a bona fide life

Ridiculous Hot Chocolate Winners!

2012-01-28T10:38:00.003-06:00

To celebrate reaching 400 followers on Facebook, we are giving away 4 samples of our hot cocoa! We gave one away about two weeks ago and here are the winners of the other three.
Ronin took care of the entire giveaway because she's awesome like that!

Congrats Marcy! I'll bring yours when I bring you the Care Bears book. :)

Amy, I'm not sure who you are or how to contact you.
If I don't hear from you by the time we go to bed tonight, we'll draw another name!

Yay Sarah! Send me your mailing address and we'll hook you up!

Congrats to Ria as well for winning the first sample.
The Captain is making the hot cocoa right this very minute.

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"Alice"

2012-01-25T07:49:00.000-06:00

Hunter and Ronin just completed a two week run for the show "Alice", a short one act
written by our good friend E. Roy Lee, based upon "Alice in Wonderland".
They had a great time and they can't wait to work at Murfreesboro Little Theater again in the near future. I'm already trying to convince them to spend four weeks of their summer at the theater. We'll see what happens.

The cast members all brought their hand held electronic devices to use backstage during the performances. This was a "common ground" upon which Hunter and Ronin could meet the other kids as they like their DSs as well as the next kid. They learned about pictochatting during this time backstage and they have started chatting with one another... which has led to lots of spelling, writing, and drawing practice. Not to mention bonding between siblings as well.

We love you MLT!

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Avril Lavigne: Language girl?

2012-01-24T13:13:00.004-06:00

You may remember this post from last April... also about language in an Avril Lavigne song. Well, she's done it again. She has inspired yet another post about "profanity" and my daughter.

So, she has this song called "Wish You Were Here".
The lyrics of the chorus are as follows:
Damn, Damn, Damn,
What I'd do to have you
Here, here, here
I wish you were here.
Damn, Damn, Damn
What I'd do to have you
Near, near, near
I wish you were here.

I quite like the song. I can really relate to the sentiment. The need to repeat a "profanity" over and over again because there is just. no. other. appropriate. word to describe an intense emotion... I'm all over that.

Suddenly, after hearing it several times, Ronin started yelling, "Language girl" whenever it would come on the radio. She did this like maybe four times. First I changed the station. But after several times of this behavior, I decided to address it head on. I told Ronin that it was perfectly fine if she found the language in this song to be offensive. However, labeling the artist as "language girl" because of the words she had chosen to use was offensive to ME and I believed it to be critical and judgmental. She started singing "Critical and judgmental" and that was that. I was sure to tell her to feel free to let me know if she found this or any other song on the radio to be offensive. I was happy to change the station. But we didn't have to label or criticize the artist. Just turn the station. It's our right. Just like it was her right to compose those lyrics.

Today, the song came on the radio. I noticed that she was singing along. To all of the words. Happily. I guess maybe she decided to not be offended by the song and to instead embrace it, and all of its words.

To me, it is important to raise children who do not judge others for the words they use. It's also important to me that my kids not be prudes or place values on words that simply don't have to be there. And I'd love to see them embrace art, all art, and appreciate it for what it was meant to be, by the creator, without passing judgment first.

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Ten Things I've Learned So Far From "The Artist's Way" (and a giveaway)

2012-01-23T17:27:00.004-06:00

I've been working through "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron. Ideally I'd be signed up for my friend Cindy's class and go through the process weekly with new friends who are becoming family. That will have to wait for another space in time though. For now, I'm working through the book as best I can, with a bit of support from an online group that I created who may or may not be actually going through the book too. I've finished week five (out of twelve) and I've made many breakthroughs, drawn some conclusions, and flat out have become so unblocked that I'm moving forward with a few things that were merely ideas and dreams prior to starting the process. Here are just a few of those things. If you are feeling stuck in your life, missing something, not sure what... perhaps this amazing book might be just what you are looking for. Take a peek. Give it a try. Let me know how it goes.

1. I'm not as blocked as I thought I was. In nearly all areas of my life, I'm actually quite unblocked. I live very authentically, except when it comes to following through with producing my art... and maybe except when it comes to taking my own personal needs and desires seriously.

2. I want not. I have had to make lists (and lists and lists) of things, items, I'd like to own. It's been so hard for me to come up with anything. Most of the items I'd like to own are not unattainable either. I guess maybe I already have everything I need and want. Or maybe I'm "low maintenance". Or a combination of both.

3. I may not actually WANT to do many of the things I thought I want to do. Like, for instance, I might not actually want to write a play about leukemia. I may be writing a book instead. A totally different book than the one I thought I was going to write about 9 months ago. What I do know is that I'm not going to force myself to work on something that doesn't come out of me naturally and easily. Life is too short.

4. I missed directing. I made a very clear goal on my birthday to get back into the theater. Notice I didn't say on the stage. I said into the theater. Then I started praying about it and bam, I knew that I was supposed to offer my services to my church family. Now I'm smack dab in the middle of directing a show at my church and let me tell you, so far, I'm loving it. So very much. I'd forgotten how much I loved directing and it's just that much more gratifying when my own kids are part of the cast.

5. If you ask for it, it will be given to you. I said that I wanted to take a yoga class and now I've found myself a perfect yoga/meditation class that I can take every other Sunday for a mere five bucks. I said over and over again in my "The Artist's Way" exercises that I'd like to take some art classes... drawing, painting, sewing... you name it. Now I know that there is a small rural art school about TEN MINUTES FROM MY HOUSE. I am learning to get a firm grasp on my desires so that I can ask for them. There is an unlimited supply of abundance for us all. We just need to ask for it.

6. I wouldn't change a thing. The more I write my morning pages (they are such a great tool), the more I realize that I truly have no regrets. There are some things that haunt me at times but in all honesty, every last mistake I've made has worked together to make me the woman and mother and artist that I am today. I am thankful for all of it.

7. I really want dreads. My husband thinks dreads are ugly but it seems that having dreads is way up on the top of my list of things I'd have if I lived more authentically. So I'm considering SOME dreads. As a compromise.

8. It's a gift if I let you in. I have learned that I don't shut people out and keep them at a safe distance just because I'm a paranoid bitch. Instead, I think it's more that I have a deep respect for myself and I feel that if a person is to be let in... inside where they can see me, know me, experience me... they must earn it. If they have not earned it... or they have shown me repeatedly that they cannot be trusted with my heart then they don't get in. Simple as that. And I am not sorry.

9. My childhood eludes me. I have no memory of myself as a kid before the age of... maybe 12. No memory. If you knew me then, I'd love to hear your memories of pre-12 year old Mandyray.

10. My old age is going to rock. I have so many interests that I want to pursue. There is not enough time to do it all right now. But I know that if my Father gives me enough time on earth, I'm going to try them all out. I'll be one busy senior citizen gramma. With my gray hair dread locks, my nose ring, and my chucks. I guarantee.

Now it's your turn. I've been promising my readers some samples of our Ridiculous Chocolate hot cocoa. It's good. GOOOOD. It's made from coconut milk powder, coconut sugar, and raw cocoa powder. You just add hot water (and a bit of stevia and cayenne if you are me). It's amazing. I know you wanna try it. So this is what you do... leave a comment here telling me about something you want to do... are about to do, can't wait to do when you have the time. Or tell me something else that was inspired by this post. Tell me about something related to unblocking your artist. For we all have an artist in us. We are made in the image of our creator. And He is the ultimate artist. My kids and I will draw the name of three winners (we already have one from last week) in the next few days. Be sure I have a way to get back in touch with you if you win.

A comment = one entry. :)

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A glimpse at unschooling

2012-01-20T10:15:00.002-06:00

Once in a while I'll freak out and create a schedule or buy some workbooks or some other unnecessary thing for the sake of education or peace in our home. I'll notice that the kids seem less enthusiastic about learning or that they aren't as engaged as I'd like to think they should be. But once I've implemented this structure, I'll realize that the new structure hasn't changed much of anything. They are still... bored, tired, stressed out, or whatever label I want to apply to the current situation.

My most recent freak out was followed up by a sudden bought of clarity. My kids weren't lazy. My son wasn't refusing to learn. They were TIRED. DOH! They are in the middle of doing a play and they are simply worn. out. Wasn't I worn out when I was doing shows? Didn't it take all of my energy to do rehearsals and performances? Didn't I just want to veg in front of the television during my free time? YES!

Once I let go of the new "structure" I'd implemented, some magical things started to happen. We are still enjoying some of our new workbooks, particularly the science and geography ones (no, I don't think my kids NEED to know this material... I had just noticed their interest in the topics before so...). But for the most part I'm sitting back and taking notice of the things they are doing on their own. Without any interference from me. If I just relax, they show me clearly that they are learning and thriving in this lifestyle.

So Ronin has taken up drawing.

And laying around on the kitchen table while doing a workbook page.

There has been building and building of blocks...

and playing and playing with toys.

This morning they went and found some boxes in the garage and constructed some sort of play fort with them.

They are also playing video games, watching tv (Hunter just recently watched the entire series of "Arrested Development" and is about ready to watch it again), making art for others, reading, and lots of laughter.

I HATE that I keep doubting the unschooling process.
But I love that I always come right back to it once I get real with myself.

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A Donkey Between Two Buns

2012-01-09T02:49:00.002-06:00

So ten months and three counselors later, we have finally found someone who agrees with us that our oldest child, Hunter, might in fact be dealing with some neurological differences. This counselor doesn't believe that he is depressed or simply displaying a "difficult temperament". Instead, he said he'd readily give the label of PDD (Pervasive Developmental Disorder) and that as time goes by, we'd look into a diagnosis of Asperger Syndrome. I hesitated to share this information here on this blog at first. Especially since I've tried explaining it to Hunter and he doesn't seem to even want to listen much less understand it. I'll continue to fill him in and keep him in the loop (meanwhile, putting books on hold at the library, consulting the mothers of other Aspie children, and researching the syndrome like crazy on the internet). I decided to go ahead and share this new journey with my readers, however, because I didn't see how it was any different than sharing our leukemia journey. Is Asperger's the same thing as cancer? No. But is it something that should carry a stigma any more than cancer? No. Did Hunter even fully understand what leukemia meant when he had that? No way man. In fact, he never once asked questions and has never shown the least bit of interest in his disease. Despite Hunter's lack of interest in his own story, however, my sharing our journey has been especially helpful to a number of people. Hunter has inspired, touched, and blessed thousands of individuals with his fight against leukemia. And I suspect that his resolve while dealing with Asperger's (a syndrome that he'll have for the rest of his life... his sister can't fix this one for him!) will inspire other Aspies, friends of Aspies, and parents of Aspies. So, I'll be blogging some about our new diagnosis. It's not really a new journey as the "symptoms" of aspergers that Hunter displays aren't new. He's had them his entire life. It's just that I was blown off when I asked for help in the past. And then the very week that I finally made an appointment for Hunter to see a local DAN doctor, he was diagnosed with leukemia. So that kinda took a back burner to more pressing issues. But now he's off of all of his meds, he's taking a high quality fish oil, a high quality multi vitamin, he's eating well, and it's time to get our hands dirty finding this kid some help (which mostly means Occupational Therapy... and training for his parents)! I'm actually quite excited about the progress we've made. Hope. Help. Answers. Validation. It's all REALLY good stuff to me right now.

I have asked Hunter if he'd like to talk more about this thing called Asperger's and his answer was that he knew it just meant a donkey between two buns. He wasn't interested in THAT. And maybe that's okay for now. After all, it's not really his problem right now is it?

Some of you who have met Hunter and who have known Hunter for a long time may be finding it hard to imagine that he's autistic. Just keep in mind that it's a spectrum disorder and that means it looks different for everyone affected by it. Some days Hunter's behavior is like that of someone who would be considered to be "neurotypical" but on other days, it's clear that he's struggling. A lot. The important thing here isn't the label. It's to find him (us) some help so that he doesn't struggle so much. If we didn't think the quality of his life was deeply affected, we'd not be seeking out such a diagnosis. But from what I've come to understand, a diagnosis can lead to help. And help is all we want.

He's been through so much. He deserves to have a high quality life that he enjoys.

I look forward to sharing more of our journey into this world of autism with you. I hope that our story will inspire you, educate you, and help you appreciate your situation, no matter what it might be.

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A Six Year Old Girl

2012-01-02T15:40:00.006-06:00

My smart, vivacious, wild, intuitive, energetic, fun, sensitive girl turned six yesterday.

On Friday we presented her with an early gift.
Piggy Paint.
So that she could have her piggies painted before her birthday play date.

"O.M.G.," she said. "I have my own nail polish."

The playdate on Saturday was a huge success. Unfortunately, some friends had to cancel because of sickness but we were excited about the friends who did come.
There were all natural strawberry cupcakes, hot dogs (a birthday tradition it seems), a count down to noon, gorgeous amazing weather

and even hula hooping.

We didn't end up spending any time inside so the centerpiece became irrelevant but I was pretty proud of how this last minute Barbie decoration turned out.

Looks like this is how a six year old girl spends her birthday morning.

After we all hurriedly got ready for church, she quickly opened her gifts.
This one, a Barbie cup, plate, and bowl set was by far her favorite gift.
Something I didn't expect.

After church, we had reserved the bus at Mellow Mushroom, a very special treat.
Ronin got to spend time with her family and open gifts from them.

And she was allowed sweet tea, also a very special treat.

Drayken kept driving us home. He seemed to like the bus.

Showing off her new Barbie movie and her big girl charm necklace.

Throwing this photo in as well... she asked me specifically to not post it on Facebook... so I'm not. Brother Tom Beckwith took this photo at our church's Christmas service and I think it's simply stunning. Isn't it?

Last night, as we were laying in bed getting ready to end our special day, she grabbed a hold of me in a big bear hug and said, "Mom, I want to thank you for giving me such a great birthday." What more could a mom ask for?

Happy 6th birthday, Donut. I can't wait to see what 2012 brings you.

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My Top Ten Favorite Things about 2011

2011-12-31T07:38:00.006-06:00

As I'm sure you can imagine, the first part of 2011 was very very difficult. But lately, as I've been working through "The Artist's Way" and reflecting upon the past year, I've come to realize that not only was it a difficult year but it's also been a very eventful year filled with blessings and accomplishments. As a matter of fact, I do believe it has been the best year of my life so it sets the bar particularly high for 2012. How can it be any better? (And it will be!) So, without further ado, and in no particular order, I present to you...

My Top Ten Favorite Things about 2011

10. Blogging/Online Friends: This year I have really learned to cling to the friends I've made through the internet. Without them, I'm certain I'd feel so terribly alone. I have grown closer to some who I've known for a while and I've met some new folks who I love very much. Even had the chance this summer to spend the morning with my sweet wonderful friend, Jen. What a blessing she is to me! I've also been able to become and stay connected to some of my "cancer mamas" thanks to the internet. They are also a saving grace for me.

9. Fun Stuff: Thanks to my in-laws and Make A Wish and mere creativity and drive, our family has engaged in numerous fun activities this year. From attending a baseball game to spending time at Walt Disney World, I'd say we've had just about as much fun in one year as a family could possibly have. And boy did we need it! When a child has been sick and both he and his dad have been isolated from the home and the rest of the family I think it's vital that the family be able to spend a lot of time doing fun things together in order to reconnect. We have been so very blessed with many opportunities like that this year and I think Hunter is finally fully integrated back into the family again!

8. Small Group at Church: For years, we have tried to become involved with a small group at our church. We gave it a go several times but for one reason or another, they were never a good fit. This fall, the perfect group came along when we needed it the most. The group includes children with whom my kids play really well and it includes a bunch of adults with whom my husband and I play well :). But the best part is that it's a service based group focused upon including our children in the service projects. This, my friends, is an official answer to prayers. This group even helped me accomplish my goal of serving the people at the Children's Hospital this Christmas! Thank you Kit and Keith for organizing it. Can't wait to see what the new year brings for our group.

7. Ridiculous Chocolate: Our business has grown over the past year. Our delicious products are being sold in a retail location now and I think we will have a label really soon (fingers crossed). We also got to sell our products at several different venues over the holiday and we have plans for new venues in the spring. Things are not moving as quickly as I'd like to see them move but it's moving forward so that is something. I am so excited to see what 2012 brings for our business! Thanks to everyone who has helped make it a success.

6. Teaching at Church: One day during the summer I walked up to one of our children's ministry directors and told her that I'd like to teach on Faith Blvd during the fall. She said that the puppet room was available and that she thought I'd be great in there! I had always wanted to teach in that class and so I was really excited by the offer. I immediately took the position and I've simply LOVED it! First and second graders are the absolute best. They are so funny and sweet. We have a lot of fun in the class. And I've had several kids, including my own, tell me that my class is their favorite. What a blessing!

5. Theater: I've blogged a lot about theater over the past few months. But honestly, being reintroduced to the theater and the people in the theater has been such a blessing for my family. "Pippin" was such an amazing experience for us all and I'm so very thankful for it. We made new friends and most importantly, Hunter learned that he has a talent and a passion for something (other than "The Simpsons")!
4. Leslie: Yes, Leslie, you get your own number. I've prayed and prayed for a friend like Leslie. The friend I could always count on. The one I would text or call automatically if I had good news... or bad news. The one who would offer to come sit with me if my dog had to be rushed to the ER. The one with whom I'd automatically want to spend my birthday. The one with whom I'd want to vacation and take a cruise with in our middle age. I *almost* had that friend several times over. Almost. But not quite. Then this past summer I scheduled a play date with an old friend from high school. She was a public school teacher now. We'd long since grown apart. I never dreamed that she would become that friend to me. Her friendship has become a cherished gift and it's renewed my faith in people and in myself. She's amazing, loyal, caring, and doesn't get her feathers ruffled easily (which seems to be necessary when you are a friend of mine;)). I'm abundantly blessed.

3. Rocked the home health care nursing gig: This time last year I was FREAKED the heck out because those first few nights staying with Hunter outside of the hospital in the Hope Lodge were a nightmare. And I didn't have two other kids to care for and a house to run. It was just me, him and a room. I had to learn so much and stretch myself in ways I never dreamed I would have to stretch. I had to become a home health care nurse. And that's what I did... from January until the middle of March my life revolved around meds, flushing lines, feeding Hunter his liquid nutrition through his line, measuring fluids and food and then measuring vomit and diarrhea, calls to the hospital... it was not easy. It was the greatest challenge of my life. I cried a lot. I felt disconnected and unavailable to my other two children. But slowly things got easier. I got used to my new job. Hunter was treated for GVHD and adrenal fatigue and I was able to finally get some food to stay in his tummy while the vomiting eventually stopped. And he had his line removed. It all worked out in the end. And I now feel extreme gratification in knowing that I had persevered and done the best that I possibly could for my child, even if at the time I was so sleep deprived and exhausted that I couldn't see anything good about it. Today I am pleased to say that Hunter is no longer on medication of any kind (unless you count his multivitamin and cod liver/butter oil) and I like thinking that I played a big role in his recovery. Somehow I made it through all of that without any major screw ups!

2. Following through with goals: I set a goal to garden and I did it. I set a goal to start making my own laundry and dishwasher detergent and I did that too (and continue to do it). I set a goal to complete The Couch to 5K program and I did that as well! So I felt really good about the fact that I reached these goals despite all of the challenges we were enduring last year. I'll have no such excuses this coming year so I better complete my list of goals in 2012 as well.

1. Maggie: In May, Hunter was gifted with a doggie. She has been a miracle, a gift directly from God. She is patient, loving, and as sweet as pie. She tolerates a lot of nonsense from the toddler and she is so much fun. Most importantly, she has helped Hunter get through some really tough times this year.

Now a new year is upon us and I have some objectives set for 2012.
Things that I personally want to focus on and accomplish (some of which I already wrote about for my birthday in November) are as follows:
Work on stand up comedy... study it, write it, and hopefully perform it.
Take some classes: improv, sewing, and yoga, specifically.
Garden, again.
Commit to praying more, particularly for my husband and our financial situation and our business.
Contribute more to our business, Ridiculous Chocolate.
Prayer Journal
Prayerfully work on the musical or play or series of monologues or whatever it might become about Childhood Leukemia that is swimming around in my brain (no deadlines for now... not ready for that).

What I learned this past year is that I can set goals and they help get me started... as a sort of kick off. But eventually the universe just hands whatever it wants our way and sometimes those things end up being even better than the goals were. I'm certain that 2012 will hold lots of unforeseen surprises as well!

Happy New Year, friends! May you all be blessed in 2012!

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Our First Visit From Santa

2011-12-26T15:49:00.006-06:00

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Children Are Nestled All Snug

2011-12-24T22:54:00.006-06:00

Christmas Eve lunch... in a diaper.

The requested brown gravy.

Spice cupcakes with a runny frosting.

Maggie... licking the remains of the meat loaf muffins.

Lemon Meringue pie made with coconut sugar.

Grandpa brought gifts.

Red candlelight... my favorite childhood Christmas memories
involve some of these exact candles.

Our new favorite book... our own copy!

More Lego... oh great ;)

A Perfect Christmas gift ;)

Treats for Santa... including Ridiculous Chocolate.

The treasure map that the Captain made to be left by Santa for Hunter in the morning.

A girl and her doll, sleeping soundly.

Santa has been. I think this is my cue to get some rest.

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In a horse drawn open sleigh

2011-12-24T22:34:00.004-06:00

Yesterday we enjoyed a great deal of pre-holiday bliss.
First we hosted a playdate with one of Hunter's very best friends, her mom, and her little sister.

Then we spent some time building this fun, simple, all natural gingerbread house kit by
Dancing Deer.

Then Ronin, Drayken, and I got crafty by making some recycled Christmas trees using old poster paint, frozen pizza boxes, and a bunch of random craft supplies in the craft closet.

Drayken super duper enjoyed this craft so I think that I'll incorporate the concept of punching out circles and gluing them to card board into our weekly routine more often ;)

Finally, we drove over to the Murfreesboro City Square and took a lovely horse drawn carriage ride around the downtown area.

I loved how I noticed little details that I normally would not have noticed while riding through the square in a vehicle.

I really love our city. Can't wait for next year's carriage ride!

Finally we came home and took the best Christmas picture that anyone has ever taken in the history of photography. So proud of this goofy bunch of heathens.

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Dolphin Tale dvd winner!

2011-12-23T10:11:00.003-06:00

I love doing the giveaways the old fashioned way!

The whole family can get involved!

Congratulations Mira to you and your entire family!
I hope you will enjoy your dvd!

Thank you again to Warner Brothers and Homeschool Movie Club for the chance to bless one of my readers with this amazing film!

Happy Holidays from
Michael, Mandy, Hunter, Ronin, and Drayken

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Breakfast with Santa at Belle Meade Mansion

2011-12-23T04:48:00.002-06:00

Wednesday the 21st we had an amazing morning thanks to
Make a Wish, Macy's, Belle Meade Plantation, and Ms. Wynonna Judd.
Have you heard about Macy's Believe Campaign benefiting Make a Wish?
Be sure and check it out.

On the way to the event, we passed Santa's tour bus!!

Once we were at Belle Meade Plantation, we walked around the gift shop for a few minutes.

Snapped a couple of pics of the super cute Christmas chotchkies they had sitting around.
I'm sorta in love with the kewpie doll.

Once we were inside of the event, the kids made bird ornaments.

And we all wrote letters to Santa.

I love that Hunter and Ronin's letters didn't involve asking for anything.

Then Hunter and I were interviewed for WKRN News Channel 2.
You can watch the clip here.

Then we had breakfast! A delicious breakfast.
Bagels, donuts, amazing eggs, best. hashbrowns. ever., fruit salad, apple juice, orange juice.
I ate like I've not eaten in years and it was SO GOOD!

While we were eating, Santa showed up!!

I love this picture. Santa's telling some magical story and Ronin is like,
"Yeah, whatever dude." :)

Then the kids got to sit on Santa's lap and visit with him for
a while and hand deliver their letters.

Then Cinnamon (one of the elves) and Santa sang some songs...

and then "Auntie Wy" showed up and they read "The Night Before Christmas" to the children.

You can kinda see their little heads poking through.

As we left, each child was given a gift bag with an elf hat and a large Mickey doll (which made Drayken super happy).
We all had a magical morning!
Thank you to everyone who made this amazing event possible!

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Dolphin Tale Give Away!

2011-12-20T19:49:00.004-06:00

Remember a few months back the kids and I got to go see a preview of the movie "Dolphin Tale"? And remember how much we loved it? How we loved it so very much that we made it a priority to go and visit Winter, the star of the movie, while we were on our vacation in Florida? If you remember any of that then you will understand why I'm super duper psyched to announce that a bona fide life is giving away a copy of "Dolphin Tale" on dvd! YES!! Winning!

If you have not seen this movie yet then be sure you check it out... even if you aren't the winner of this giveaway. It was life changing, inspiring, and absolutely one of the best movies I've ever seen. And one of the coolest things about it was how they represented homeschooling in such a positive way! Gotta love it when the media tells the truth about how awesome homeschoolers are!

So, anyway, about the giveaway:
You can earn several entries. Here's how:
1. Like a bona fide life on facebook
2. Follow my blog through google
3. Share this post on facebook
4. Share my post about our visit with Winter on facebook

Please leave a comment on this post telling me how many entries you get and providing me with an email address so that if you win, I can contact you in order to get your mailing address! Residents within the US only can win. (Sorry international friends!)

One of my children will pull your name out of a (Santa?) hat on Friday. You have until 10:00 am central standard time to enter! Good luck and Merry Christmas!

Thank you to Homeschool Movie Club and Warner Brothers for the opportunity to do this giveaway.

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Why Santa is coming to our house this year

2011-12-15T16:14:00.003-06:00

In the past I've had pretty strong feelings about Santa. I decided to not "do Santa" here at our house for a variety of reasons... all of which I'm sure you've heard before:
-Some fat dude in a red suit need not take credit for gifts brought
-It takes the focus off of Jesus
-It's a lie

I was pretty passionate about this issue... bonded with friends over it. Other friends who also didn't "do Santa" for the same reasons. I figured it was how we'd always do things around here.

This year, however, Christmas has been different. Dramatically different. (Sorta like how I'm different. Dramatically different.) Not just on the surface (throwing myself into a check list of must do Advent activities, playing holiday music around the clock, checking out every Christmas book we can find on each trip to the library). It's also been different in my heart. I'm so excited about Christmas that I almost feel like a kid again.

Over the past few weeks I had started to feel a little sad that we'd not done the Santa thing. Somehow, after the ordeal we've had to hurdle this past year, receiving "credit" for gifts was no longer important. And I no longer felt like Jesus didn't want to share the stage with Santa Claus... Jesus probably doesn't care. He receives all of the glory for everything around here all of the time. Santa could never take away from that. And I no longer saw the game of Santa as a lie... instead I started to see the magic behind it all. The magic of childhood suddenly seemed incredibly important for me to capture in my home. We fought so hard to preserve and regain the carefree joy and innocence of childhood for our children... Santa would just be one more element.

So I started talking about "Santa" around the kids. With a wink wink nudge nudge. Asking them what they'd want Santa to bring them, assuming he was real and came to our home. Sometimes the older two would say that he wasn't real. Other times they'd say what they wanted him to bring. I was testing the waters. Was it too late?

And Drayken started showing an interest in Santa. He would get really excited about him when he'd see Santa in books or on tv. His eyes would twinkle with that magic that I so longed to capture in our home.

So one evening I asked the big kids, in a hushed whisper, if they would like to "Play" Santa for their brother with me and dad on Christmas Eve night. They were totally in.

The incident that solidified the "doing Santa" thing for me, however, occurred while we were driving around looking at Christmas lights. Out of the blue, Ronin said, "I wonder if we left cookies and milk for Santa and they were gone the next day... would that prove that he was real?" And Hunter said, "That's a good idea. A great way to prove if he's real." My kids, who had always been told that Santa wasn't real, wanted to leave Santa some cookies and milk. They want to play. They are asking to be in on this Santa game.

So I'm taking the bait.

Next week, thanks to Make a Wish, we are going to have breakfast with Santa.
Ronin has been told that Santa will definitely not come to your house if you don't believe in him.
And everyone has told me one thing that they'd like Santa to bring them for Christmas (they don't know about letters to Santa yet).
Hunter wants to leave him some sugar cookies and Ronin thinks he'd like some of their dad's egg nog.
And I guess we'll just wait and see what they say on Christmas Eve night.

I'm just playing along. I won't say, "Santa is real and he'll really come to our house on Christmas Eve night". And I certainly would never use Santa and the gifts that he will bring as a way to control the kids and manipulate their behavior. But I also won't spoil the magic. I'm playing the game. It's been a blast so far. And everyone is winning.

Here's to creating new traditions in our home. I hope that when Santa comes to our home, he'll bring with him a little bit of magic and restore some of the innocence that leukemia took from us last year.

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A Victorian Christmas, lunch, and some shopping

2011-12-08T19:06:00.003-06:00

We had a fabulous day.
We enjoyed a Victorian Christmas Homeschool Program this morning.

Next we enjoyed a great lunch at our favorite local hang out.

At the mall we did a little shopping.

Hunter purchased a special gift for a special friend
and had it gift wrapped by a local church group.

It is a rare occasion when the big kids and I can get out and run errands so easily without baby brother. Today we accomplished a lot that needed to be accomplished and we enjoyed one another. As Hunter said, "I feel like today has just been a great day."

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My ministry starts at home

2011-12-07T05:33:00.001-06:00

Lately I've been reading some articles and blog posts through my Facebook feed that have left me feeling really lousy about myself and the way in which my family celebrates the holidays during this time of year. There are all of these posts about not having a tree and not doing gifts for the kids and not buying anything (and instead doing handmade) and the no's just go on and on and on.

At first these messages started to get me down. I never felt convicted like God was trying to tell me that they were right and I was wrong. But of course that practical, ideal, do gooder inside of me always feels like crap around this time of year... right before I succumb to purchasing something at a Wal-mart or when I say I'm going to make a lot of handmade gifts and it never happens or I end up using wrapping paper with Disney characters instead of that lovely brown wrap which can be recycled or at least legally burned in your backyard. I always wrestle with myself and my inner consumer each year... and this year has been no different. The many posts about the topic have just made it that much worse. "You are so fake. You call yourself authentic but then you order the bulk of your gifts from Amazon and you wrap them in paper that will end up in a landfill. You suck!" And of course, "All of that money you spent on video games or Barbie stuff could have been spent to help a family in need. Why didn't you adopt an angel from the angel tree? You super duper suck."

But about a week ago, I heard a soft still voice reassuring me. It said, "Your ministry starts at home."

About five years ago, I was a young mom of two young children. I had recently given up my volunteer position at our local pregnancy support center and I felt like a big fat worthless slob. I had little money with which to help others. I had what seemed to be loads of down time but yet, because I was nursing one and at times two babes, there was just no way that I could DO anything with that time. I remember spending a lot of time online (ha! imagine that) and reading the website of Candace Cameron Bure. You know... from "Full House"... Kirk Cameron's sister? She seemed to have it all together. She was a mother, a wife, INSANELY GORGEOUS, and ministering to others about our Lord. How did she do it? I emailed her. I never dreamed she'd actually respond. I asked her for advice on how to give back, to volunteer, to create a ministry for myself while I also had two small children at home. Her response was precious. Priceless advice. She said a lot of things but the bottom line was this: "Your ministry IS your home. Your children and your husband... you minister to them first and foremost." Unfortunately I didn't believe her or I wasn't listening or something because shortly after I received her email, I started a nonprofit organization which took my focus off of God, off of my marriage, and off my children. It nearly landed me in a divorce. Wow. Candace had been right. If I wasn't putting the ministry in my home first then dang, nothing else mattered did it?

Fast forward a few years and in walks leukemia. Sure, I'd already given up the non profit and admitted that I had been a failure and an idiot. The leukemia thing further solidified in my mind that my kids and husband had to come first... only after God. I began to practice my new found belief. Everything extra stopped and I was able to truly focus on the things that matter. Since then I have taken this focus even further and I've limited our activities, created a schedule for our home, and I'm focusing on and ministering to my family.

What does this have to do with the winter holiday we celebrate, Christmas?

Well, I believe that part of my ministry to my children is to provide them with a wonderful Christmas. Life is short. You never know how long you have with your kids. This could be our last Christmas together as a family... and each one from now on could be our last one. Having a kid with a deadly illness sorta puts things in a different perspective. Creating sweet memories today, while I still can, is at the top of my priority list.

My kids enjoy a Christmas tree. They like getting new ornaments for the tree.
My kids enjoy receiving gifts. Ones from Amazon. Ones that they saw at a big box store.
My kids like watching Christmas movies. On TiVo. And we don't always fast forward through the commercials.

All of these things contribute to making the kind of Christmas that they want. Could they have a good Christmas without these things? Sure. Does it hurt them or make them less loving or giving for us to allow this type of "commercial" Christmas? I don't think so. My children's hearts are the most important hearts in the world to me. If I'm not filling their cup and giving them the Christmas of their dreams... the Christmases of their childhood memories... then everything else I do is really pointless, as far as I see it. And getting caught up in the details of whether our Christmas is green enough or lacking in commercialism enough is just gonna suck all of the fun out if it, if you ask me.

This doesn't mean that I don't make an effort to support local businesses and to adhere to my otherwise eco conscious and health conscious way of life. Absolutely, I do. But it's not my focus.

Of course we are doing and will continue to do something for others during the holidays and throughout the rest of the year but I won't tell you what those things are because that's not my style.

My kids have so much. Sometimes it's hard for me to think of them as children "in need". But the fact is, they are. They are emotionally traumatized by what they have been through this past year and a half. They are excited to be together as a family this holiday season. We all are. Leukemia or not, we all have kids who are in need. They are all in need of good, sweet memories. Of special time together as a family. Of believing that they are worth the spoiling and the doting that often comes with the Christmas holiday. And if that means a little commercialism and a little spoiling and a little tossing aside rigid standards in favor of fun and impracticality once in a while... well... then I say a big fat resounding "YES"!

What if you knew that this was your last Christmas together as a family? Would you do anything differently?

Happy Holidays (no matter what holiday you celebrate) and a Merry Christmas from our family to yours.

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The First Day of Advent

2011-12-01T16:24:00.005-06:00

Last night I made a master list of each Advent activity we hope to complete during the 24 days of Christmas. I hung them by magnets on the back of our front door.

The day started with the older kids excitedly opening day one of the Lego Advent calendar that Lego sent to Ronin last year. She felt so bad about doing the calendar without her big brother that she asked me if we could put it away and save it until this year. They figured out a great compromise for sharing the calendar... they'd each take turns opening a day on the calendar but after the first builder had completed each set, they would disassemble it so that the other builder could have a turn. This way each child gets to build all 24 Lego sets in the Advent Calendar. I was so proud of this peaceful solution that they worked out while I was sound asleep this morning! The spirit of the season is alive in our home!

This afternoon we baked these cookies.

My egg breaker had success with two eggs and no shell.

And Edward mixer hands enjoyed creaming the sucanat, maple syrup,and butter.

We all helped roll the cookies into balls...

and then we anxiously awaited the results!

And the results were some gorgeous treats, no?
Tomorrow we will take most of them to distribute at a local nursing home.

Afterward, we took a nice long walk on this lovely and warmish December day.
We came back with a neighbor boy and the kids are all playing together outside as I type.

We are all so thankful to be together, in our home, this Christmas.
I look forward to recording our memories here and I hope that you'll enjoy reading about them.

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33 Creative Ways to Help a Family With a Sick Child

2011-11-29T13:24:00.002-06:00

1. Prayer and Good Thoughts. For our family, the most important thing that anyone did for us was pray and send healing thoughts. If you are a praying individual, you can find out specific prayer needs as they will be changing from day to day. Pray for all of the family members, not just the patient. Hunter's illness has inspired so many people to pray who weren't really spiritual or believing to begin with. It's been humbling to see God work through him to inspire faith in people I love.

2. Organize prayer chain, prayer meetings, etc. A dear friend at my church set up a prayer chain schedule for the day of the bone marrow transplant. There were people from her small group praying around the clock that day. The schedule was set up in 1 hour increments. People were setting their alarms to get up and pray.

3. Send useful gifts. The sick child will be receiving a great deal of gifts. If you want to make sure that your gift is not a repeat or that it is something needed, wanted or useful, just ask. Or perhaps you can ask the family for a list. An online wish list is helpful too. Or perhaps a registry at a place like Target could be helpful.

4. Bring meals. I honestly don't know what I would have done without friends bringing food throughout Hunter's initial hospital stay. I was in such a state of grief and shock that I didn't have the wits about to me actually prepare meals. A friend set up a Take Them a Meal schedule right away after his diagnosis. This ran for several weeks and helped get me through the worst part of his illness. My friends were generous about working around our weird dietary needs and went out of their way to be accommodating. Hunter, having a suppressed immune system, had special dietary needs too. It might be a good idea to check with the family to see if the patient has special needs as well before planning your food contribution.

5. Stock their freezer. One of the most amazing things that anyone did for us while Hunter was undergoing his treatment was that they stocked my freezer. A friend from church organized a schedule and provided freezer space at our church specifically for our family. A church family member who lives near us would occasionally deliver the items.

6. Organize a meal making party. The previously mentioned church friends also hosted a cooking party for my family. They spent an entire evening cooking for us (they even took recipe requests) and we ate from these meals for about three months. It was so helpful after Hunter came home and we had to make trips to the clinic two times a week.

7. Volunteer to organize a meal schedule. If you have great organizational skills and a little free time, you could be of incredible help to a family with a sick child. Use a website like Take them a Meal and create a schedule for meals to be delivered to the family. Talk to the mom or dad in the family and have them give you the details of any special dietary needs, requests, etc. I know that when we were dealing with being in and out of the hospital and our lives were complete and total chaos, I didn't have the time to be talking to a lot of different people about anything, much less food. I had one friend take care of organizing the first two months and then another friend took care of the the meals and schedules afterward. It was so nice to only have to communicate with them instead of each individual who was interested in helping us with a meal.

8. Organize fund raiser. Fund raisers are really helpful when a family is in crisis but it's next to impossible for the family members to organize one. We were fortunate enough to have a pancake breakfast hosted in our honor. The proceeds came to our family at a time when we really needed the help.

9. Attend or donate to a fund raiser. Should someone host a fund raiser in honor of the family of a sick child, they will need people to attend and donate to their cause in order to make it a success. This is a great way for you to help. Your donation or participation may seem small but it's absolutely not.

10. Raise funds in their honor. One of my good friends decided to run a race and ask for donations for our family as her "sponsorship". It worked out nicely and she was able to raise a chunk of money with which she purchased a gift card to a local grocery store.

11. Keep your church/circle of friends informed. I always appreciated it when my friends copied and pasted what I had written about Hunter on Facebook into their own Facebook updates. Knowing that I was not the only person making sure that everyone was informed was such a huge relief to me.

12. Run a Facebook page or Caring Bridge site or blog. If you see that the family is struggling with sharing their story online, offer to do it for them. It may not be that they aren't interested in using the internet for spreading the word, they may simply not know how or they might not have time. Offering to take something like this off their plates might be just the time and sanity saver they were praying for.

13. Gifts for the siblings. If the sick child has any brothers or sisters, remember them when you send or deliver a gift. They are having a hard time too and they could really use the attention.

14. Take siblings for a special date/outing. One of the sweetest things that anyone did for us during our time of need was take my daughter out for coffee. My dear friend came by one morning, picked up Ronin and took her to Starbucks for a little girl time. Just the two of them. This was such a HUGE blessing to my daughter as she'd been suffering in silence and desperately needed some attention and some time away from the house.

15. Sponsor a special day for the entire family. Our family so rarely got to be together or go out into public during our journey that I imagine a special day or evening out would have been really nice. Once we were back together, we couldn't afford to do much of anything special. Perhaps a movie and dinner certificates might be nice? Or passes for an outside activity like mini-golf so that the sick child doesn't have to be indoors around other people.

16. Reach out to the mom. Even if I didn't respond, every note, every comment, every phone call, every visit meant so much to me while Hunter was sick. I felt so lonely and my friends were so important to me. My friend Sherry came over and spent the day/evening with me and Ronin one day right after we got the diagnosis. Just having her in the room with me was such a comfort. I felt a little less alone.

17. Listen to mom/be a sounding board. When you are reaching out to mom, offer to listen to her. Volunteer to be her sounding board, a shoulder to cry on. I so desperately wanted someone to whom I could talk on a daily basis. I had a chance to go out and talk with friends occasionally but most days I felt really alone.

18. Contact favorite celebrities. One of Hunter's fans on Facebook took the liberty to send handwritten notes to some celebrities on his behalf. We have since received autographs from Mark Hammel, William Shatner, Tim Allen, Carrie Fischer... and a few other friends got some autographs for us as well. What a creative way to cheer up a sick kid.

19. Get the media involved. Newspapers and television news can be a great resource for attracting a attention to a story. They like human interest stories. For us, the media exposure was great because it helped us promote our business and it also helped us in collecting Lego sets for Hunter's long stay in the hospital.

20. Send a card or letter. Hearing from people all over the country (and occasionally from a different country) was very exciting for Hunter. But getting a card from someone right here at home was just as nice. Hunter received countless cards and we have saved each and every one of them. Some hospitals have the option of allowing you to email a greeting directly to a patient which they will print and hand deliver to the patient's room. This is an economical and fun way to let your friends know that you are thinking about them. Check to see if the hospital at which your friend is receiving treatment offers this option.

21. Volunteer to clean. Cleaning became a huge burden to me when Hunter was sick. For one thing, I had two other kids for whom I must care, alone, day in and day out. On top of this challenge, I was exhausted. Needless to say, I didn't sleep well and I spent a lot of my time (at least at first) breaking down into sobs. I was a mess. I had no energy left for things like cooking and cleaning. Add the burden of having a sick kid who would be coming home to a potentially "hazardous" house and what I desperately needed was help making my home germ free. A good friend of mine wrangled up a troupe of folks to come by and disinfect every square inch of my home. We were tackling germs and mold, two things that could be deadly to my sick son. Together we did an amazing job and it was a HUGE blessing for me. A few months later another friend donated a cleaning service to me so a couple of nice ladies came and cleaned my home top to bottom. They even used the nontoxic cleaners with which I provided them. Both of these gestures were two of the most helpful things that were done for us during our journey.

22. Lawn work. When you have a sick child, the last thing you need to be dealing with is lawn work. My husband takes care of all of the lawn work here at our house and I remember him stressing out about when he was going to be able to come home from the hospital long enough to mow and use the weed eater. Luckily a sweet family offered to help us out with our lawn. One evening our friend came over and mowed the entire lawn and took care of the weeds as well. It was a huge blessing and took a lot of stress off of my husband which I really appreciated.

23. Follow through with promises. We had a lot of people promise a lot of things that never came through. Things come up and that is totally understandable. (I had to back out of a commitment just this week due to too many other commitments in my life. I get it.) It's important, however, to let it be known that you aren't going to be able to come through with your promise. No one will hold it against you. It's just that if you don't let the family know, they may be waiting on the gift you said you would send or the money you said was on the way. Sometimes it's hard to know whether to go ahead and get that special video game or Lego set for the patient when you aren't sure if it's coming from another source. Just let the family know if you can't do what you said you were going to do. It's no big deal.

24. Adopt the family at Christmas. Between not being about to go into public for shopping and financial strains, shopping for Christmas was really difficult when Hunter was sick. I appreciated that several people donated items to my children so that once we finally had our family Christmas, there was more than plenty for them under the tree.

25. Donate your tithe. I had a friend tell me that they were going to donate their tithe to us until "this whole thing is over with". I remember thinking what a great idea that was. Maybe you'll think it's a good idea too.

26. Find creative ways to "visit" with a child in the hospital. Thanks to technology there are now so many ways to visit with a sick person in the hospital. We were so fortunate to be able to take our computer and web cam to the Children's hospital so that Hunter and his dad could use Skype to visit with me, his siblings, and even his grandparents, his aunt, his cousin, and occasionally a friend. He even got to visit with a few of my online/blogging friends. If you don't have a way to chat face to face via the internet, maybe you could make the sick child a video greeting and then upload it to youtube. We love making videos and posting them online. It's tons of fun, and really easy with a flip video camera.

27. Research about resources for the parents. I know that when Hunter was first diagnosed, I was so miserably tired and stressed out that I couldn't for the life of me research what resources were available to me. Occasionally a friend would send me information that was of value and I really appreciated it because I was in no place to do that kind of research on my own. Find out the needs of your friends and then start looking for help. There are people and organizations out there offering help... there is help through the government (and there is no shame in taking it, especially during a time of crisis). Ask your friend what kind of help they need and start contacting some places for them. Create a list of resources for your friend.

28. Donate your skills. Think about your talents or skills and then figure out some way that you can use them in order to help out the family in need. Maybe you are a great organizer/event planner: hold a fund raiser. Perhaps you make a product: donate a portion of your proceeds to this family. You're a great cook? Make them a freezer meal.

29. Sponsor a night/day out for the parents. Marriage is hard. Marriage is really hard when you have a few kids. Marriage is nearly impossible when you have a sick child. Everyone is stressed out. There is no time for connecting. When you do get to connect, you are dealing with such heavy stuff that you can no longer have fun. It's not pretty. One thing that I have thought for over a year is how much I would LOVE to have a special night or day out with my man. But even if we had childcare, where would we get the money to pay for a date? A great way to help out a family with a sick child is to help pamper the parents. Their marriage is important and someone needs to be looking out for it because I doubt they are right now!

30. Offer to run errands. Parents of a sick child have errands still. The only trouble is that there is NO way that the errands are going to get done. Offer to do their shopping. Pick up their laundry and drop it back off washed and folded. Pick up and return library books. These are helpful things that will allow the family to focus on what is truly important in the moment.

31. Volunteer to stay with the child or to keep the other children during hospital stays. Maybe mom or dad needs to leave the hospital for a few hours or over night so that they can go to an important meeting (there are a lot of those when you are applying for food stamps and social security and disability... trust me) or they just need to take a shower and get a breath of fresh air. It was so helpful when someone other than my husband or I could stay with Hunter for just a little while. It was also helpful when someone would offer to take my other two children so that I could be at the hospital too or so that I could just breathe. It didn't happen very often and I appreciated all of the help that I got.

32. Speak up and let them know that you care. I always noticed when I heard from someone... be it by phone, card, email, facebook comment. I also noticed when I didn't hear from people. And it hurt. So even if you don't feel connected to the situation but someone you know and care about is going through a difficult time, let them know that you noticed, that you care, and that you are thinking about them.

33. Bring your kids/their friends to visit. It meant the world to Hunter every time he got to see one of his friends while he was sick. He often didn't feel like playing but every time he got to spend a little time with a friend, we could a change in his spirits. He would ask to see certain friends and they never followed through with showing up for him and that hurt him, a lot. Remember that just because a kid is sick doesn't mean that they no longer have social and emotional needs. If there is window of opportunity where it's safe for them to be around other children (if they have a compromised immune system) and they would like to see you or your children, make yourself available. It could change a life.

Giving Thanks, A rebirthday, and a birthday

2011-11-28T13:31:00.007-06:00

I've slept really well the past few nights and I must assume it's from the insanely busy time we've had over the holiday weekend. Wednesday night I stayed home while the rest of the family went to have Thanksgiving with the Captain's family. I worked solid for four hours preparing our Thanksgiving day feast. We had to get up super early Thursday morning. We bundled up, went across town to the university, and volunteered in the children's play area during the BoroDash (a Thanksgiving Day race created by a friend from church). We provided boffer swords and people with whom kids could sword fight. After the race, we came back home, I finished cooking the huge feast (Rosemary turkey meatloaf, lemony garlic green beans, Ezekiel dressing, iced blueberry tea, pumpkin pie from scratch sweetened with agave and stevia, topped with homemade organic whipped cream sweetened with agave), and we were eating by 11:30. We TiVoed the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade and Thanksgiving Live on Food Network and we watched those while we let our huge meal settle. Finally, we headed to the playground for some play time. Once we were home, we cleaned the house and started preparing for Hunter's Rebirthday Open House.

The Open House was a bit of a bust. Don't get me wrong, we were THRILLED to welcome our good friends the Schusters and the Trails and a few family members into our home but Hunter was disappointed because a lot of folks who said they were coming didn't show up. It was fantastic to share Hunter's rebirthday with Lydia Schuster and her family... my friends from college who walked the leukemia/bone marrow transplant journey before we did. Friday was the four anniversary of her diagnosis. I tried to get pictures of the kids but it's hard to shoot a moving target. Let me assure you that Lydia is a gorgeous little girl and she is doing very very well. She inspires me so much.

After the open house was over, Hunter and Ronin had some money burning a hole in their piggy banks. They had both been saving for something special... Hunter was saving for the Queen Anne's Revenge (a ship from "Pirates of the Caribbean") and Ronin had been saving for a makeup artist set. Well, Hunter had been selling art on his facebook page, earning money for watching his brother, helping to sell chocolate at the Farmer's Market, and maybe even by just hitting grandparents up for cash. After his grandpa Charles (my dad) left Friday, he had enough to buy his ship and the last figurine that he needed... Gunnar. And Ronin had enough to buy her makeup set as well. Yes, it was Good Friday but we let the kids convince us to take them to Toys R Us and Walmart so that they could buy their goodies.

After Friday, I've decided that I'd prefer to just gloss over any future rebirthdays. Hunter wanted to celebrate and was really excited about it but Ronin had a super hard time dealing with the emotions of the donation/transplant. She seemed to be experiencing a resurgence of the PTSD from last year and that's just not cool. It was a really difficult anniversary for her. And for me... well... I'm still waiting on biopsy results. Waiting for the call is hard for me. Now it's been 11 days since his surgery and not a word.

The following day was my birthday. Hunter, Ronin and I stayed in bed and watched a cool new movie on Netflix called "The Christmas Bunny". We all loved it. Then we got out of bed and started our day. We had a lovely lunch at Newk's where I treated myself to a shrimp Po Boy (shrimp is something that I love love love but never ever eat). Then to the Parent Teacher Store where I finished up Hunter's stocking stuffers. After that, the library where Hunter checked out six of his own books (which he finished up that evening).

And finally, a family hike at Barfield Crescent Park... my favorite place to hike because the long walk is well worth the work: And it's only about five minutes from our house. So it's a place that we can visit frequently and get to know really really well.

I don't remember ever spending my birthday outside, in short sleeves and flip flops. But that is my most beloved state and so I was sublimely pleased to get to enjoy such niceties on my 34th birthday. Of course, the best part was that I was with my husband and my son as well as my other chillens for my special day. God is so good.

So now the Captain and I are both 34. And I looked at a photo of us on our 22nd birthday (or somewhere near that date) and we definitely look better now than we did then.

I spent the evening with my good friend Leslie, her daughter, and my daughter. We did dinner, wine (and sparkling juice for the girls), facials, manicures, pedicures, Barbie movie, and lots of talking. All things good for the soul.

As per my new tradition, I will list my birthday resolutions:

1. Take a class: Improv, sewing, or yoga preferably. I received some money for my birthday which I will stashing away for just this purpose.

2. Complete "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron: I will be starting December 5th. I'll be leading a Facebook group discussion. Join us?

3. Do theater: Some of my intentions for doing theater include... writing the play that I have in my head about childhood leukemia, beginning a drama ministry at my church (this is already in the works), audition a couple more times and just see what happens, and be involved with Hunter and Ronin's theatrical journey. Also, read plays. That is important.

I feel like it's pointless for me to tell you the things for which I am thankful this year. Surely, you already know what they are.

Hoping your Thanksgiving was relaxing, rejuvenating, and filled your cup.

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Letters to My Dead Mother Part 2

2011-11-18T07:52:00.001-06:00

Read Part 1 here.

Christmas Eve of 2005 was by far the worst day of my life. I was 90 months pregnant with, who turned out to be, an incredibly stubborn child. And my mama was in the Emergency Room. You see, she’d been having this intense headache for a couple of days and she couldn’t get out of bed. My mother, who was sick in bed like once my entire life, could not get out of the bed. I knew immediately. Earlier that summer I remember I was taking a shower when suddenly I was struck with the realization that something terrible was going to happen. At first I assumed that it would be my father. After all, he’d been recently diagnosed with serious heart disease and we’d been mentally preparing for his death for quite some time. But when I asked the voice, if you could call it a voice, if it was daddy, the answer was no. The whisper in my ear told me something I was neither able to accept nor deal with. The voice told me in no uncertain terms that it would be my mother to fall ill and pass away. This came as no surprise really. I mean, she had been a smoker for 40 years of her life, she ate many processed foods, and she didn’t take supplements. And she never exercised. However, despite the logic behind the realization that she was ill and would soon die, I brushed the thought away and chose to ignore it. Only crazy people hear voices, right? And I was NOT crazy. I’d already fought that battle. So, that Christmas Eve morning when my mother made her first visit to the ER, I couldn’t shake the certainty that the voice had been right. And I knew.
I still remember the sound of the ring on my cell phone. You know how you can set the ringer on your phone to play a different tone for each person who calls? Well, I eventually had to stop using the ringer that I had set for my mom and dad because each time I heard it, I remembered that day and how I felt and would feel like I was going to throw up. I was in our bed, my cell phone was sitting on the desk to my right, and at about 9:30 am, it rang. I remember my dad saying something about how they’d found some tumors on her brain and my screaming, “Oh Jesus, NO.” And his response was for me to be strong. This was a typical reaction. Any sign of emotion, he’d warn me to be strong. I’d heard it my entire life. It was a great deal of pressure but worth the effort in order to avoid the hour long lecture that would follow if I failed to “Be strong”. I remember my husband’s reaction… pitying… as if I’d just told him that I’d spilled tomato sauce all over my clean white shirt. I remember my desperate need to be around someone, anyone, who was as freaked the hell out as I was. It was a nightmare. I had to get out of there. I demanded that we drive the one mile to my in-laws house for I knew that they would at least pretend to care. I remember feeling guilt. My fear, anger, screaming, crying, violent outbursts were surely ruining everyone’s holiday. Everything from that day and for the next few months was a big blur. I remember making phone calls to Aunts and friends. I remember calling my midwife and praying that she suggest I just go ahead and check myself into the hospital to be induced but then at the same time not wanting her to come out. I remember opening gifts; trying to act like I was thankful for the items I’d unwrapped, trying to pay attention to the gifts that Hunter was getting and trying to not claw out my eyeballs. I remember desperately needing my mama but not wanting to talk to her or see her. I remember despising my husband for the way he was acting, yet I have no idea what I wanted from him.
For days, I couldn’t sleep. My midwife suggested I buy some wine. So, my pregnant self drank a giant glass of wine several times a day so that maybe I might sleep and just to keep from losing my mind. I wanted to talk to my mom so much but I was terrified to hear her voice… scared that that the sound of her voice or the look in her eyes would somehow communicate to me the gravity of the situation and then, what if I cried? And my dad yelled at me. And I wanted to die? Thus perpetrating the crazy, fucked up cycle from my entire life. Not then. I couldn’t handle it. Not right then.

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Wimpy Kid "Cabin Fever" Release Party!

2011-11-15T18:34:00.002-06:00

Today was a big day for the geekiest geeks in this house!
The new Diary of a Wimpy Kid book was released!

Behold.
"Cabin Fever".

After we stopped at Target to pick up a copy, we headed to our library for the Wimpy Kid release party! Here's Hunter working on a word search.

Wimpy Kid Cupcakes!
(Which led us to a fun discussion about "Cupcake Wars" with another lady.)

I snapped this gorgeous pic on our way out of the parking garage.
There is just something so amazing about seeing both of my big kids reading to themselves.

Hunter could not wait to get home and make his Wimpy Kid pyramid
(seriously, he's been talking about this for a year).

We cannot WAIT to read the new book.
Do you and your kids read the Wimpy Kid series?

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Birthday Hike at Radnor Lake

2011-11-12T17:12:00.004-06:00

Today we celebrated the Captain's 34th birthday with a hike around Rador Lake in Nashville. It was our first time there and we all loved it. The wildlife and fall scenery were great but the best part for me was seeing Hunter successfully complete the 2 hour long hike. What a HUGE milestone for him to accomplish here at the anniversary of his transplant! We are so blessed.

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Letters To My Dead Mother Part 1

2011-11-10T12:26:00.002-06:00

A few years ago, I wrote this. Thought you might like to read it. There are a lot of things that I would change, wording wise, but this is the way that I wrote it and this is how it will stay.

My mother was an artist at heart. She loved music, reading, writing, painting, sewing, and creating in general. It breaks my heart to think of the lost potential. She was so discouraged. She believed that she did not and could not amount to anything. She did not even dare to have dreams. Her true self was so oppressed that there didn’t seem to be any musings of thoughts like, “If I could be anything, I would be…”. I remember that she used to tell me that when she was a child she dreamed of being a fashion designer in New York City. For anyone who knew my mother, this would probably come as a shock. Her pants were always too short… very much like her life. She’d wear these terrible looking white socks and you could always see them, you know, due to the really short pants. I used to make such fun of her. Somehow I felt that once in a while I would catch a glimpse of that small child who longed to create something beautiful, who longed to live in fancy high rise and have her name in snooty magazines. That girl was in there all along shrieking “Let me out!!”
I am so fortunate that I realized my authentic self before it was too late. Every time I write something, I do it for myself but I also do it for her too. I now know that we are all creators and the only limitations on the ways in which we use our artistic qualities are the ones that we put upon ourselves. We make a conscious decision about whether or not we are going to live authentically and artistically. It’s not up to anyone else. Sure, there may be people in our lives telling us that we can’t, or better yet that we won’t, but that is their problem, not ours. It is never too late. As I enter my 30’s, I know that I can create my own experience on this crazy planet we call earth. So, here I am. Creating performance art out of my own experience. I hope you can learn from what I have to say, just as I learned from experiencing and writing about it. And, I hope you go home and write that short story, take that painting or ballet class, go out and sing karaoke, or just simply tell your spouse, or better yet yourself, the truth about who you are. Because you deserve it. The universe deserves it. And your mama would be very proud.

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Sunday Market is a Smash!

2011-11-08T08:45:00.005-06:00

Finally, those of us who don't care for football have something fun to do on Sunday afternoon.

This past Sunday was the kick off of the Rutherford County Farmer's Market Sunday Market! From now until Christmas you can shop for both your groceries and your Christmas gifts, sample food, socialize, meet new people, and support local business and agriculture in just one stop!

I had the pleasure of working this event and my senses were constantly being overloaded with pleasure. So mark your calendar to come out this next Sunday (and every Sunday until Christmas) to enjoy the sights, sounds, and smells of this unique and fun event!

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Interested people interested in interesting things

2011-11-05T15:52:00.003-05:00

I haven't had the notion to write about unschooling much lately. But just the other day I was thinking about interests... and how my family has them. A lot of them. We are often told that we are interesting people. But we are also interested people. Then I read this post by my friend Stephanie at Ordinary Life Magic and I felt inspired and affirmed. "Here's the thing-- when life is interesting, we have lots of interesting options. And we have lots of interests." Yes, ma'am. Exactly what I had been thinking (only she can say it so much prettier than I can ;)).

My husband and I have always had numerous interests. Now the children seem to be following in our footsteps.

Currently

-Hunter, age 7, is interested in wrestling, hockey, robots, engineering, helping the elderly and sick children, cooking, physics, dogs, guitar, skateboarding, comic books, math, horseback riding, theater/acting, money.

-Ronin, age 5, is interested in childbirth, homebirth, breastfeeding, makeup artistry, cooking/baking, gymnastics, theater/acting, horseback riding, cheerleading, soccer, dance.

-Even Drayken, age 2, has a few interests already... the outdoors/nature, shooting bad guys, dancing, trains, cars, any large type of automobile.

They have many interests. More than we can currently afford to pursue.

But what I was thinking was how my kids' interests is why unschooling works for them. I know that when I was a small child I didn't have a lot of interests. What few I had I was certainly not encouraged to pursue. I don't ever remember my parents asking me if I'd like to take lessons for this or that. I was enrolled in a dance class that I despised and I sucked at and that was that. Nothing else was an option.

Almost daily I find myself in a conversation with one of my children about their interests... showing them videos or television shows (which lead to more videos or television shows) or checking out books in the library. I want to always be up-to-date and in the know regarding what my children find interesting so that I can help them develop those interests.

This week Ronin had her second horseback riding lesson. While she was brushing her horse, I said to her, "This is a great skill to have. You could grow up to use horseback riding lessons as a way to earn money from home to help support your family." Her teacher looked at me funny and I explained, "I always try to encourage my children to consider skills they can attain as opposed to degrees they can earn. I have a degree and I graduated top of my class but I have very few skills that I can use in order to earn money." And this is so true. As a stay-at-home mom it would be so nice to have several skills upon which I could fall back in order to contribute to our income. At 34, I'm trying to develop some new skills so that I don't feel like such a burden.

A term I hear tossed around in reference to the type of citizen we are supposed to be trying to produce and send out in to the world is " well-rounded". I feel that the first step toward raising well-rounded children is to encourage a number of interests. The next step is to hand them as many resources as is feasible that will help them develop those interests into skills. The third step, I believe, is to then step back and let them do the rest. As long as they are interested in something, they will find their way if they are given enough space, enough free/down time, and the freedom to follow their dreams, no matter how "impractical" they may seem by society's standards.

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Happy Halloween 2011!

2011-10-31T20:05:00.006-05:00

I've come a long way since this post. I no longer take issue with candy, trick or treating, Halloween, etc. I am just happy to have my family here, together, alive, well, and I don't think that Jesus is offended by our dressing up and saying "Trick or Treat". Perspective = changed. Dramatically. Here is what our Halloween has looked like.

We made caramel apples.

The caramel slid off the apples but it tasted good :)

Reverse trick or treating at a local nursing home with our small group from church.
What a GREAT group of kids!

We attended a bone marrow drive where Hunter won the cupcake walk

and got to help present an award to this young lady who shaved her head at the St. Baldricks event held in honor of Hunter. We had actually met Haley that day.
She'd given Hunter a stuffed animal.

Trunk or Treat with our church family.

Halloween story time and pumpkin waffles. YUM!

Corn maze

Trick or Treating on the Square

Sorting candy and deciding which ones to save for eating and
which ones to pass on or save for art.

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Autumn at Cheekwood

2011-10-26T15:20:00.004-05:00

Thanks to Groupon I was finally able to purchase a membership for Cheekwood, my very favorite place to visit in Nashville. If we lived nearby, I'd go weekly. It's simply fabulous. But during the fall, when the leaves are changing, and the scarecrows are on display is my favorite time of year to visit. Today was a perfect day to just spontaneously take off with a packed lunch because the weather was perfect and it was our last "nice weather free day" before the scarecrows were taken down next week. Despite protests, everyone went and had a great time.

This was Ronin's favorite scarecrow: Scaryoke.

My favorite view... in the Japanese Garden.

Scary Potter

The local chapter of API made this baby wearing themed scarecrow.

Ronin shared some pennies for wishing.
Hunter wished for a skateboard.

Now I've checked this off of my "must do before Halloween" list. Tomorrow it's supposed to be raining and coldish. We'll stay in, make treats, watch movies, and assemble our costumes.

Are you nearly ready for Halloween?

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Harvest Days at Cannonsburg Village

2011-10-25T09:07:00.005-05:00

Saturday was the perfect day for a fall festival.
The weather was spectacular and I had actually had some sleep!

We got to see and do some really neat things like...

churning butter

making biscuits

a real live "train"
Greyhounds

art from the Murfreesboro Art League

and a hay ride (where we met some lovely homeschooled young ladies, one of whom attends our church. Small world, right?)

Happy Fall!

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Darn Those Theater People

2011-10-23T19:30:00.003-05:00

Hunter's three week run of "Pippin" has come to an end. It was exhausting, exhilarating, and fulfilling. It was absolutely an amazing first production for Hunter. I'm beyond thrilled for him.

In light of a post I wrote a while back about conservative homeschoolers and liberal theater people and how they don't exactly mix, I feel like I need to back up and revisit some of those issues now that we have actually experienced local community theater.

The reality of our theater experience was that Hunter was the only child cast member in a rather raunchy show not entirely appropriate for children. We could have easily decided to not let him be a part of the cast for a variety of reasons... from the use of profanity, the orgy scene (which for the record he never saw), the implied drug use... or because the cast was filled with people who smoke, drink, are gay... the list goes on an on. It would have been SO easy to have just walked away from the experience... out of fear.

Luckily our fear of what might happen if we didn't let him do this ONE SINGLE thing in which he had taken an interest was greater than our fear of what might happen if we did. And for that I am thankful.

We stepped out on faith.

And guess what? It was all totally fine. Every single person involved with the production took it upon him or herself to adopt my son. He made many new friends. Some of them openly gay. Some of them openly nerdy. All of them openly kind and loving.

I was told time and time again how great my kid is. How he must continue to act because he is talented. How they had thoroughly enjoyed working with him and that they would be coming to see his next show in January.

So, just like I suspected, having my children around theater people did nothing more than make my children love the theater. That was the end result. Well, and they made a lot of new friends.

To me, that is nothing to fear. It's something for which I am thanking God.

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A trip to The Greenery on the Square

2011-10-18T08:33:00.002-05:00

If you live in Murfreesboro and you haven't been to the Greenery on the Square then what are you waiting for!? Until now, I had to travel to the far away lands of Franklin or Nashville in order to enjoy a quaint and classy little shop like this. But now, much to my pockets' dismay, we can stop by this lovely little eatery and shop (or dine) any time we are on or near the square. So at least a couple of times a week!

Hunter, Ronin, and Drayken stopped by, purses on arms,
to each buy a homemade mango popsicle.
I snapped this great picture of them with owner Sarah.

With a store like the Greenery, you can really get away without driving to Whole Foods quite as often. This little place has pretty much anything you might need for an organic delicious dinner.

Bulk grains and snacks.

Local art.

Lovely gifts.

Seriously folks, support this place!
And hopefully in the near future you'll be able to stop by and pick up some
Ridiculous Chocolate!

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Florida Vacation Part 15: Meeting the Characters

2011-10-18T03:21:00.000-05:00

Hunter loved meeting the characters (especially Jack Sparrow and Pooh), Drayken loved meeting every character but one... for some reason Donald scared the snot out of him! Ronin had no interest in meeting any character and whenever she had her picture made it was because we asked her with desperation in our voices. :)

I hope these Disney characters realized how lucky
they were to be hanging with my awesome kids!

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Florida Vacation Part 14: Chip and Dale's Campfire Sing Along at Fort Wilderness

2011-10-18T02:55:00.000-05:00

One evening we went over to Fort Wilderness (in my opinion, the coolest place to stay on the Disney property) for a campfire, marshmallow roasting, sing along good time. It was quite possibly the most fun we had while we were at Disney World. It was so relaxing and lovely.

As soon as we arrived, Hunter started creating the word "Love" out of gravel on the ground.

We enjoyed singing along to some of our favorite folk tunes.

Hunter and Dale... we know it's Dale because he has a red nose!

Ronin roasting marshmallows on a stick that was given to us by some kind people who over heard me telling the kids that I didn't have the 60 cents to buy a stick.

This event is nightly and free and open to anyone staying on Disney property!

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Florida Vacation Part 13: Downtown Disney

2011-10-18T02:52:00.000-05:00

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Florida Vacation Part 12: Hollywood Studios

2011-10-18T01:51:00.000-05:00

Before we left for home, Hunter had rested up and was able to spend one good day at Disney's Hollywood Studios.

Cars Topiary

Waiting in line to meet Buzz and Woody

Disney Junior Live on Stage.

Jedi Training Academy

Indiana Jones stunt show

Me and my pal Betty White

No one would do the American Idol attraction with me :(

Talking with some ducks!

Phineas and Ferb

Muppets fountain

Outside of the Star Tours Ride

Kermit balloon!

Toy Story Mania Ride!

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Florida Vacation Part 11: Epcot

2011-10-18T00:51:00.000-05:00

EPCOT is usually my favorite of the Disney parks. But not this time.
My sweet Hunter wore out pretty quickly into the day and he had to go back to the hotel with his grandparents. Nothing was the same without him.

Here I am with Ronin and her "face tumor" (they take your picture on the Spaceship Earth ride to use in these little animations at the end of the ride... she happened to have her arm raised when the camera took our photos). This is what our future looks like. I'm stoked ;)

No one wanted to watch "Captain EO" with me so my sweet husband agreed to come along.
It was both horrendous and spectacular. Michael Jackson in 3D, as bad as it may have been, was pretty awesome. :) Yay 1985.

After the Figment ride, there is this fun music activity.

I always enjoy learning what Disney is growing in newfangled unusual ways on the Living with the Land ride.
This is some lettuce.

And these are tomatoes growing on trees.

Hunter got to ride Soarin' before he headed back to the hotel.
He says it was his favorite ride at Walt Disney World.
Ronin and I both thought it was terrifying.

After Hunter headed back with his grandparents, the Captain and I stayed with the other two children. We took them over to the Country Pavilions for Ronin to sample food. Unfortunately she was pretty tired too and whined most of the time we were there.
We did enjoy some refreshments and some entertainment.

Popsicle

Dragon berry frozen drink

Flan

The traditional Mickey Head ice cream bar.
Belgian Waffles with berries and whipped cream.

This is an example of a menu from the Food and Wine Festival.

Drayken was enthralled by these dancers from China.

And these musicians from Japan.

I wish I could say that we had a great time but I can't. I can see how this place will be fantastic one day in the future... maybe 7 years from now. There are so many learning opportunities at Epcot but if you are tired, grumpy and miserable, you aren't going to learn a thing!

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Florida Vacation Part 10: Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party at the Magic Kingdom

2011-10-16T00:19:00.000-05:00

Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party 2011

Racing cars

Finally, someone else wanted to accompany me on the tea cups.
Now I'm not the only member of this family who enjoys spinning!

The Winnie the Pooh ride entrance had been given a make over since the last time we
were at the Magic Kingdom. Here's Ronin stealing a bit of Pooh's honey.
Oh bother.

Sweet toddler on the carousel.

A lovely view of the moon from the Dumbo ride. Not a fan. Of the ride.

Ronin found the "It's a Small World" ride to be enthralling.
It was one of the only rides she didn't hate.
Like Mother like Daughter.

By all means the highlight of the night, for Hunter at least, was meeting Jack Sparrow.
Now he can check that off his bucket list.

Jack took a little extra time with Hunter to show him how to do a cool pirate pose.

I had to ask Jack to please be still as he kept moving his arms and hands.
Pirates are so hyperactive. Maybe from the rum? Or the scurvy?
He held still long enough for me to snap this precious photo.
Aren't they both super gorgeous?

Hunter and Drayken chillin' in the wheel chair. Cuteness abounds.

My personal favorite part of the night (and Drayken's too I'd guess) was the Woody, Jessie, and Bullseye dance party. These characters could get down. I had a blast dancing and watching Drayken try to monopolize Woody. No doubt about it, this child has come home a Woody fan.

Woody was so sweet to Drayken every time that baby D approached him (which was probably six times). He wasn't interested in the other characters. He just wanted to hang out with Woody.

Hunter and Drayken really had a great time. They rode the Pirates of the Caribbean ride twice. And from then on Drayken was looking for "pirate ship" and "Jack" every where we turned. Drayken was terrified of the fire works (that's my boy). No one was interested in the parade. Hunter watched Jack float by and he was finished. No need to see more. I enjoyed all of the costumes and decorations.

We had this awesome family photo made with Cinderella's coach.

And this pretty much sums up the way that we all felt as we left that evening.

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Florida Vacation Part 9: Animal Kingdom Lodge

2011-10-13T02:17:00.001-05:00

We left Tampa and went to our Disney "home"... the Animal Kingdom Lodge. This lodge is part of the Vacation Club property and so we stayed there because the kids' grandparents are members. The rooms are super nice but the decor is a bit dark for me. Not enough color!

Outside of the rooms, however, the place is gorgeous.

A pool and a water slide that the kids would have just stayed in the whole time.

Animals outside of your balcony. I can't believe I didn't get a picture but we saw zebras (which Drayken said he was going to shoot and then eat??), giraffes, and other animals that I can't even remember now!

We caught a glimpse of these flamingos right outside of the playground...

which was super cool.

We checked out the game room and of course I had to snap a photo of this pinball machine.
Jack Sparrow... yummy.

The night we left, while the Captain was loading the van, we enjoyed dinner at the Mara:
vegetarian flat bread pizza, African stew over rice, and Zebra domes (and I found the recipe here thank goodness... very excited kids).

There were SO many things at the lodge that I had wanted for us to do but it didn't happen.

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Florida Vacation Part 8: St. Pete Beach

2011-10-13T00:12:00.000-05:00

Although we were in Florida for over a week, we weren't able to spend much time on the beach unfortunately. Hunter still cannot be in the sun so we had to wait until close to sunset to visit the ocean. Little did we know that the same winds which caused our deep sea fishing trip to be canceled were going to cut our beach trip short. Regardless, it was a lovely evening. I can tell that Hunter is much like me in that he loves to be near the ocean. It was one of the only times during the trip when he seemed thoroughly content.

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Florida Vacation Part 7: Great Explorations Children's Museum and Sunken Botanical Gardens

2011-10-11T07:15:00.000-05:00

The Captain and I had a morning alone with Drayken while we were away. This was an unexpected treat. I can't think of a time we'd ever gone out and done something special, just the three of us.

We visited the Sunken Gardens.

And the Great Explorations Children's Museum.

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Florida Vacatino Part 6: MOSI Kids in Charge, Ropes Course, and Butterfly Garden

2011-10-11T05:09:00.000-05:00

And for our third and final installment in the MOSI part of our Florida Vacation series, I present to you: Kids in Charge.

A fabulous Ropes Course that Hunter braved with his dad.

Their technology center where you could stop in and play video or computer games, build something (Hunter really liked these gear building toys) and see some neat Lego sculptures.

Of course, my favorite part of the museum was the butterfly garden.

In general, it was a great museum and I am glad we were able to visit.

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Florida Vacation Part 5: MOSI Health Exhibit and "Waking the T-Rex in 3D"

2011-10-11T03:03:00.001-05:00

For the second MOSI installment in our vacation series, I give you the Health/Human Body exhibit. Mostly, Ronin and I found this to be scary and disturbing as well.

Though we did like this lovely statue of a pregnant lady.

We appreciated this part of the exhibit devoted to the importance of laughter.

Ronin and the Captain spent a lot of time on this robotic surgery simulation game.

The psych nerd in me wants a brain puzzle!

I'm not even sure what this was all about but I loved that it was tribute to "Hollywood Squares".

Zoltar! My kids recently saw "Big" for the first time so they remembered Zoltar.
They were bummed out when we put in a quarter and instead of receiving a fortune they received a health related trivia question.

This giant Magic 8 Ball also didn't work correctly... more health related trivia.

This 3D movie was pretty neat.

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Florida Vacation Part 4: MOSI Weather and Disaster Exhibit

2011-10-09T10:00:00.000-05:00

While we were staying in Tampa, we used our reciprocal benefits with our local science museum membership to visit the MOSI: Museum of Science and Industry. If you are in the Tampa area be sure to check it out. It's a super fun place with a TON to do. Plan to stay an entire day.

The first exhibit we visited was about natural disasters.

Here are the children posing as emergency workers after a natural disaster.

A wild fire simulator... this is what it might look like outside of your windows during a wild fire.

And this is what your clock radio may look like after a wild fire. Yikes.

A replica of the largest piece of hail ever recorded.

Hunter is creating a house with blocks that he hopes will withstand the winds of a hurricane.

This hurricane simulator was Hunter's favorite thing he did all day!

And the three photos above are from the tornado simulator... and it was pretty accurate.
Ronin was extremely scared :(

There was a really cool room where you could be a newscaster.
Here are the Captain, Hunter, and Drayken introducing a news piece for Bay News 9.

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"Pippin" Opening Night

2011-10-07T22:27:00.005-05:00

As you may recall, Hunter was cast in a local production of the show "Pippin". He is playing little Pippin and Theo. Tonight was opening night and little did I know that I would have so darned much to say about it.

First of all, just being a part of the theater again has been so much fun. Sure, I'm just the "mom" but I have enjoyed getting to know the cast and directors and managers, etc for this show. A great group of people. And they all clearly adore my son and that is flippin' awesome.

But beyond the whole theater thing lies my intense gratitude that my son seems to have found his thing. He may only act for a little while. He may continue to do it for the rest of his life. Doesn't matter. What matters is that right now. At this moment, he has discovered a talent. Something he enjoys doing. Until tonight I wasn't for sure if he was actually good at it though. I thought he was good but I'm his mother. I wear rose colored glasses when I look at my children, right? It's possible that he's not quite as adorable and funny as I think he is, yes? After tonight I now know for certain that it is NOT just me. He is truly talented. Gorgeous. Adorable. Hilarious.

I cannot count how many audience members said that he did a great job or that he made them cry or that he was the best part. He received honest, genuine, kind feedback. It was genuine praise for something he did. Attention for accomplishing a goal... not just for having cancer.

He said to me, "Mommy, do you want me to audition for another show? I'd do anything for you." My reponse: "No. Noooo noooo noooo nooo noooo. NEVER ever ever act or do anything because of me. Do it for you. If it happens to make me happy too then bonus. So, do you want to audition for you?"

"I do."
"Then we'll talk to your dad."

Do you remember how it felt when you discovered that thing that really gets you going? Music? Acting? Sewing? Writing? Birthin' babies? Did you happen to be sorta depressed right before you discovered it? Well, I was. I was pretty miserable when I found out that I was great on stage. And acting saved me. The theater saved me. It gave me a new start.

Hunter's had a hard time. He's been through a difficult journey and coming back from it has not been an easy task. But tonight I saw no evidence of that child. The one who is struggling and fighting with every fiber of his being. He didn't criticize any aspect of the process. He has nothing but nice things to say about his theater experience so far.

The theater has yet again stepped in and breathed hope into my life just when I felt like there was none. Thank you Lord for continuing to show your face in the most unexpected ways. And thank you Murfreesboro Little Theater for giving my little kid such a great opportunity!

FuNkY Playbill

His cast photo and bio in the lobby

Makeup!

With Roy. Family, Friend, Director.

Catherine, Theo, and Pippin... a happy little family.

Helping himself to snacks at the reception.

If you are local and would like to see Hunter perform in Pippin, please go here to make reservations. Be advised that this is not a family friendly show. :)

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Vacation Wrap Up Videos

2011-10-07T15:49:00.002-05:00

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Florida Vacation Part 3: My first Major League Baseball Game

2011-10-06T06:49:00.001-05:00

I'm not a sports fan. But I am a fan of dates out with the hubby when at all possible. So when the girl decided that she didn't want to go to the Yankees game at Tropicana field after all, I was happy to accompany my man to see his favorite baseball team play what turned out to be a pretty historical game.

We had excellent seats in the front row and a couple of home run balls flew right over our section. If you looked closely, you could see us on tv!

One really cool thing about Tropicana Field, home of the Tamp Bay Rays, is that you can touch and feed sting rays while you watch the game.

While I'm not a fan of Pepsi products, I must admit that this was a pretty interesting way to advertise during the game. Bottles of Pepsi products ran a race. Sierra Mist won.

While I felt pretty out of place at the game, I was excited to see my pals, The B-52's were included in a mural of celebrities who had performed at Tropicana field. Aren't they awesomeness?

I have to admit that it was pretty exciting to be at this game. The "Seinfeld" fan in me was cheering for sure! Unfortunately we were really tired and so we left before the Rays had even scored any points. The game lasted until midnight. When we woke up the next morning we learned that the Rays had won, which was what we were supposed to be hoping for it seems. Apparently we are supposed to be against the Red Sox (even if we are big fans of the show "Cheers") and the Yankees losing this game created an historical loss for the Sox. Um. Okay? Great! I guess... What would Sam Malone think?

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Florida Vacation Part 2: Lunch, Bowling, Miniature Golf, and Go Karts!

2011-10-06T02:44:00.000-05:00

After our visit with Winter, we had a meal at this place:

And then, thanks to the Captain's Aunt, we had free passes to take the little dude bowling again...

and then to a miniature golf course for some golf...

some lizard spotting...

some rainbow spotting...

and some go-kart riding.

We had a lot of fun on this day. I wish we had more days just like it!

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Florida Vacation Part 1: Visiting Winter

2011-10-05T02:28:00.001-05:00

One of the first things we did while we were in Florida was visit Winter. After seeing the movie "Dolphin Tale" a few weeks ago at a free screening we decided that seeing her and the hospital that helped save her life was a top priority and by all means was my favorite thing that we did on this trip.

Winter lives at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and has lived there since the night of her rescue nearly six years ago. If you do not know Winter's story of perseverance, faith, and hope, please read more about her here. You can also "meet" winter by watching this really neat virtual field trip from a couple of years ago.

I must admit that I was overwhelmed with emotion when we first arrived at the hospital. Just knowing that we were going to see her up close and personal was so extremely exciting to me. I have just felt such a bond with this animal since I first learned about her. I think my bond with her stems from all that we have been through this past year. I just have a heart for creatures who have had to endure such hardships from such a young age. And poor Winter didn't even have her family of origin around to help support her through her recovery the way that Hunter has.
There were signs from the movie "Dolphin Tale" all through the facility, inside and out. It's pretty clear that they are super proud of the amazing film about their girl!

This sign was neat... it explains Winter's story in full and below the sign...

Was the actual cage in which Winter became entangled which led to the amputation of her tail. Pretty nasty looking huh?

There were lots of fun photo ops throughout the aquarium.

We were able to peek through into the examination room and see the doctors working on a sea turtle.

Lots of objects had a sticker on them that said, "Dolphin Tale Prop". This object was one of them. It seems to be lots of items that would be harmful to Dolphins if dropped into the ocean.
This experience has made the whole "cut your plastic rings from your six packs" thing a lot more personal and real.
Since most of the film was made right there at the marine hospital, it was rather surreal to see something familiar from the movie around every corner.

The marine hospital is, in fact, a nonprofit and relies upon donations and income from ticket sales to continue operating. Throughout the facility there were fun little ways to donate extra spare change.

We were there just in time to watch the dolphin trainers work with Winter and her her friend, Panama. Here is Panama working with an E.D.D. which I believe stood for Educational Developmental Device (but I didn't write it down and I couldn't seem to find the information online). Either way it's a toy!

And this is my favorite photo that I took of Winter.

It was so much fun to watch the dolphins with their trainers.

There were some cameras in the water. They explained that for about three months prior to the filming of the movie, they brought in fake cameras and lights and began to get Winter slowly accustomed to the details of being on the set of a movie. It worked because when it came time to actually film the movie, she was totally fine. There were three animatronic dolphins in the film and it's very difficult to tell which ones aren't real.

The volunteers let us hold Winter's tail. This is her current one... number 17.

We got to see these little sea otters. Aren't they adorable?

And this little play area for them was about the cutest darned things I'd ever seen!

We got to see and touch these sting rays.

Outside of the marine hospital was this house boat.
If you have seen the movie you know that this is where Hazel lived with her dad.
And the basket on top was where she would go to do homeschool work and to talk to her (deceased) mother. It was a very important part of the movie.

Visiting Winter was life changing. I'm so thankful that we all had the chance to go and see her and witness the good work that is being done here at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. If you are in the area, please stop by and see Winter and her friends. You won't regret it.

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Taking a Bit of a Blogging Break!

2011-09-22T21:46:00.003-05:00

Life is full and rich and filled with so many wonderful blessings. Some of those blessings have made it to where I won't be blogging so much for the next few weeks. Never fear, though, loyal readers, when I return there will be many lovely things to read and lovely pictures to see and happiness with abound. In the meantime, please "like" my page on Facebook and don't leave! I promise that I'll be back!

Thank you for reading.

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National Costume Swap Day

2011-09-17T04:38:00.001-05:00

It may not quite be Halloween yet, but National Costume Swap Day is right around the corner! And it’s never too early to start thinking about how to make one of the best holidays of the year more eco-friendly.

On October 8, people across the country will get together for costume swaps in their own cities and towns. Swaps are a great way to go green by exchanging gently used Halloween costumes for new-to-your-kids. You’ll save the money you would’ve spent on new costumes for your kids and help the environment. In fact, swapping half the costumes kids wear at Halloween would reduce annual landfill waste by 6,250 tons—about the weight of 2,500 midsize cars!

If you’ve got friends and neighbors or a school or community group for whom a costume swap would be a good project, I encourage you to host a swap yourself or join with others. It’s easy, fun and a great way to build community around this money-saving and planet-saving idea.

You can learn the simple steps to hosting a swap here.

And be sure to register your swap so everyone can find out about it.

Many neighborhoods and towns have already begun planning their swaps. Find one near you, then spread the word and help make it an eek-o-fabulous success!

National Costume Swap Day is sponsored by Green Halloween, KIWI magazine, and Swap.com.

Ready to get started? Find existing swaps—plus information to help you start your own at CostumeSwapDay.com. (live link)

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Are your kids in the H.A.L.L.?

2011-09-14T07:17:00.000-05:00

Those of you who have been reading my blog for a long time might remember that Hunter used to host a show and tell at our local library. Of course, it was just getting started when he was diagnosed with leukemia. So now, here we are, a year later, and we have launched the program again... only this time we are pairing show and tell with a book club! Fun huh? I have four of them planned (and then we will reevaluate how it's going and whether I might like to alter the program some starting next year).

We had our first session of H.A.L.L. (Homeschoolers at Linebaugh Library) last week. I think it went really well. I did learn to not count on Facebook invitations to give you any idea how many guests to expect as people will rsvp yes and then not show up. I also learned to maybe not put quite so much effort in to the program. While the kids who were there appreciated all that we did, I'm not sure it was totally worth all of the stress and angst that I went through to pull it off!

For Show and Tell, Hunter brought his new slingshot.

He demonstrated how it worked and then helped some of the other kids try it out.

For book club, we had read "Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer"...

One of our tie-in activities was to draw a picture of something worth "thrill points" that you did during the summer. Ronin drew a picture of herself swimming.

Then the kids created "guerrilla art" for the statues outside of the library (just like Judy and her Aunt Opal did in the book).

They really got into the art activity.

We all sneaked outside and placed our "hats and necklaces" on the man and little girl.

Then the kids posed for a group photo.

Meanwhile, Big Foot had visited the library!

He left tracks all over the children's department.

The tracks led outside..

Where the children were given a popsicle (at the end of the book, Big Foot is found with the ice cream man) and a bag of Big Foot Scat (also a tie in to the book) which was really chocolate covered pomegranate seeds, raisins, and chocolate chips. They also received a packet with word searches, a dot-to-dot, coloring sheet, and supplies to make their own mask as seen above.

Thanks for joining us, friends. It was really fun.

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Seeing the Warhols

2011-09-10T06:12:00.000-05:00

This past (rainy) Sunday afternoon, my daughter and I drove to Nashville before we missed the chance of a lifetime... to see the Warhol exhibit up close and personal at the Frist Center.

Most of my readers must know that I'm a huge fan of the B-52s. I mean, it's just part of who I am. But I'm also a fan of the 70s and 80s and pop culture/new wave music from that time period in general. Talking Heads, Blondie, Cyndi Lauper, devo... I love the weirdness... the randomness... the geekiness. It's in my blood and has been since I was about 12 years old. It's like I woke up one day and realized that I should have lived in Athens, GA or New York about 15 years earlier. As I read everything I could get my hands on about these bands, my reading naturally led me to stories about Studio 54 and Andy Warhol. Like the rest of the aforementioned icons, Andy became a bit of a rock star to me. Heck, he hung out with the likes of Liza Minelli, Debbie Harry, and Mick Jagger. Wow, right?

Bottom line is that I couldn't let myself pass up the chance to see this man's work, up close and personal. Unfortunately Hunter didn't want to join us but I was thrilled to be able to share this experience with my girl. If you have an opportunity to see the Warhols in person, go. Do it. See them. As a matter of fact, see any and all art that you can see in person. It truly is life changing to start thinking of yourself as the type of person who frequents art museums... as that was something my parents never did and they pretty much taught me that only snooty wives of doctors do that sort of "thing". Well, guess what? They are wrong. Art. Is. For. Everyone.

After we basked in the glow of the Warhols, we went upstairs to ArtQuest where Ro got her art on for a while. :) The, despite my having brought us a snack, I had to then take her to the cafe because, as she says, she is "running a growth spurt.

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Bowling Playdate

2011-09-07T05:39:00.000-05:00

Last week we went with our playgroup from church to Lanes Trains and Automobiles for some bowlin'!

Little did I know that Drayken would end up being the bowling fan. While his older siblings got bored after just three frames, Drayken would have played another game. Every time it was his turn, he'd yelled "Push", push the ball down the ramp, and then scream, "Go, Ball, Go" until it reached the end of the lane. Then he'd hoot and holler like some kind of wild animal.

The older two were distracted by the bumper cars. At $5.00 per person there was no way I could afford to pay for it. But Hunter had a gift card left over from St. Baldricks day and I had a coupon for buy one bumper car, get one free. So we cashed all of that in and they were treated to a good five minutes of fun. I am glad they have that out of their systems!

Do your kids like to bowl?

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Top 10 Silver Linings that I discovered during my Journey as the mother of a Child with Cancer

2011-09-06T04:09:00.001-05:00

In honor of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, I thought that I would write a sometimes tongue in cheek list of silver linings that I found as a mother of a kid with cancer.

10. Learn who your real friends are.
Some friends walked out on us, some friends stepped up to the plate. Some of the friends who stepped up were people I'd never met before... some I've still never met. Some of them were people I'd not seen since high school or college. I was humbled to receive monetary donations from the parents of a friend from elementary school or from the church where my mom attended prior to her death. I was hurt when people I'd known well and more recently blew us off. It's been an eye opening experience and today I have more true friends than I've ever had before. And I know they are true friends because they proved it to me.

9. Lifetime membership to an exclusive club.
It's a pretty crappy club to be in but we are in good company. I have made friends who I believe will be life long because of Hunter's journey through leukemia. These women understand me and what I've gone through in a way that no one else will ever be able to understand. Regardless of how hard they try, they just don't get it. But these women? They get it. As a member of this club, I will forever be emailed whenever a friend of a friend's child has been diagnosed with leukemia (and it has happened and it will happen) and I'm cool with that. As a member of this club, I have been praised for being brave, I've been called an inspiration, I've been referred to as a hero. The truth is, any of you, once you were a member of this club, would have dealt with it just as bravely. God protected me. And He helped me close my eyes really tightly and go through it really fast, like I was trying to get inside from a thunderstorm. And now that I'm safely inside, dry and warm, I can honestly said that this leukemia journey has been the most defining experience of my life. It has helped me drop that cloak of fear and worry and replace it with a never ending desire to be with my Lord. That's all that is left for me. While I'm on this earth, I intend to follow his Holy Spirit and spread the good news to as many people as He sees fit... and most importantly I intend to minister to my children. As a member of this club, I feel like God chose me, single handed, to be the mother of a child with leukemia. For He saw something in me that made me realize that I could handle it, gracefully. For His glory. For that I say, "I am humbled. I am honored."

8. Make a whole new family of medical professionals.
When you are going through this cancer journey, and you are stuck in a hospital for a VERY long time, you grow close to (some of ) the staff members. Certain doctors and nurses at the Vanderbilt Children's Hospital have become like family to us. We are happy to see them and look forward to our visits with them. We feel sad that we don't get to see the nurses from 6A and 6B anymore... but we love our team members from the clinic too.

7. Become well-networked in your large church.
Before Hunter was sick, we knew a few folks in our gigantic congregation. But our lack of regular attendance, our lack of small group involvement, and my lack of social skills kept us from really getting plugged in (which is often a common side effect of attending a bigger than big congregation). After we returned to church in May, however, all kinds of people knew who we were. Today when I walk the halls of our church, I recognize nearly every face as a person who brought us food, or gifts, or donated money, or sent cards, or who, most importantly, prayed. One friend (who is dealing with cancer right now actually) took it upon herself to stock our freezer. She is quite talented at organizing and writing tactful letters and she got the job done. Not only did people bring food individually but she also hosted a cooking party for us. I think we ran out of food in June. That was six months worth of food... we ate those meals probably twice a week. It was astounding. One good friend had her small group sign up for prayer around the clock the day of Ronin's donation and Hunter's transplant. I know that they were covered in prayer by many that day but for at least twenty four hours, someone was praying every hour on the hour from our congregation. I was humbled. Now we feel at home with these people. They are our family and we are so thankful for them.

6. Reunite with estranged family members.
It's no secret that my earthly father and I weren't exactly on speaking terms prior to Hunter's diagnosis. But once we started seeing one another at the hospital, I felt comfortable with having him at my home. And slowly but surely I began to trust again. Today I am pleased with my relationship with him and my stepmother. I'm not sure how things would look today if Hunter had not gotten sick.

5. Earn an honorary home nursing degree.
People, I have no interest in the medical field. Some folks find it interesting, I find it terrifying. I dislike blood and needles and hospitals and even doctors and nurses. Keep them all away from me. But, despite my distaste for all things medical, I have basically earned an honorary nursing degree. I have measured poop, administered drugs daily for months and months, worn gloves to avoid urine poisoned by chemo drugs, been on "precautions" just in case I was exposed to C-Diff (a scary bacteria that causes tummy issues), cleaned a Hickman line (twice a day for months), operated a CADD (for fluids and liquid nutrition), cleaned up vomit, sanitized every surface everywhere over and over again, dealt with multiple surgeries on multiple kids, and ventured my own "professional" guess for diagnosing a multitude of problems. I have quite a bit of knowledge and experience now but guess what? I am still not in the least bit interested in the medical field!

4. Gain a new appreciation for staying at home.
After Hunter got sick we pretty much didn't go anywhere except to the hospital. This was a rude awakening for me. I had no idea what to do with myself. After a few weeks, when the dust settled, I started to enjoy how everything had come to a complete stop. My anxiety actually lessened. I started to sleep better. I had friends bringing food so I really just had time for focusing on what was important: spending time with my family. Of course, as you know, I've started going places and doing things again. But it's different now. I only do the things that I feel will be of real value to us. I am spending a lot of time going to church now. We had started to attend some classes but the kids didn't really like it so, out it went. We aren't signing up for library story time because it's just not that important to us. We are focusing on what we really want to do and we are setting priorities. I would probably still be running us all ragged had Hunter not had leukemia.

3. Take up residence on the moon.
I had a few good friends in college. One of my friends was the director/producer of the television show that I acted in and wrote for (you aren't missing much). He was a fantastic guy... really showed me what I would like in a husband one day. He was already taken. By a wonderful girl who he went on to marry. This family, long story short, adopted two boys and then got pregnant with a girl a few months later. That's about the time I got back in touch with them. Shortly after their daughter was born, on my birthday to be exact, she was diagnosed with leukemia and went on to have a bone marrow transplant. I was mortified and I kept up with the story online. I prayed and requested prayers for this family. I printed her sweet photo out and put it on my refrigerator to help remind me to pray regularly. Needless to say, throughout our journey, this family has been priceless to me. They have helped me so much just by being there. Recently I had a conversation with my dear friend. I had felt really lonely, like no one understood me. I knew that she understood me though. So I told her, "I no longer feel like I can relate to most people." She laughed. She told me that a woman she had met on their journey (also a cancer mom) told her, "Now you live on the moon." I got that. In my very soul. It's true. I no longer live here. I am not the same person and this is not my home. It's hard to explain but if you are a mom of a child who has or has had cancer, you'll probably understand.

2. Appreciate the little things.
Unless you have been separated from your child, knowing that he may not come home again, you might not be able to relate to what I'm about to say. I have grown to appreciate such small, trivial things. Hunter has been home with us for good for nine months now (praise the Lord) but I still find such joy in fixing him food, washing, folding and putting away his laundry, reading to him, hugging him, holding him... not a day goes by where I don't feel exuberant over his being with me. Watching him start to run and play again was more exciting this time around than it had been the first time. Every time he eats a good meal and enjoys it. Every time he attends a Bible class at church. Every time he gets together with friends or does something "normal" like attend summer camp or a movie... I feel so thankful. Fall to my knees thankful.

1. Face your fears and laugh in the face of cancer.
I remember when I first saw this movie some years ago (huge "Kids in the Hall" fan) thinking that I wasn't sure if I found this part to be funny or not. A kid? With cancer? Funny? No, not really. But after Hunter got sick, I thought of this scene, looked it up on youtube, and got a real kick out of it. Not only did Hunter look kinda like this after his transplant, but it's so medically inaccurate, yet otherwise accurate! The boy is totally cool with the fact that he's about to die but he acknowledges the hell that his parents seem to be experiencing. For the record, not even once did I ever hear anyone refer to whether or not Hunter's marrow was high or low. Knowing how little research went into this writing kinda makes it even funnier!

What challenges have you faced? Did you find silver linings in those storm clouds? I'd love to hear about them.
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Unschool Monday

2011-09-05T11:14:00.005-05:00

I've not written specifically about unschooling in a while but I've still been occasionally snapping random photos of our days so this a great way to share them.

One day we packed up our "school" books and headed to the park.
Hunter was at the clinic that morning.
Ronin did a little bit in each workbook and then played the remainder of our time at the park.

Playing dress up.

Venturing into the community for one of our favorite events, Taste of Stones River.
The kids got to choose whatever food they wanted at the booths and they had a lot of fun with that. Hunter chose a sandwich, Ronin chose ribs, and Drayken picked a smoothie.

On days when it's been cooler in the morning, we've been heading down toward the edge of our property to sit around on our reading quilt and enjoy some singing and poetry. And bug bites, unfortunately.

I caught Hunter reading this Simpsons book.
And I don't mean just looking at it.
I mean reading it.

Draykie is super in to puzzles right now.

Hunter spent a long time in his bedroom playing with his Legos and then came out of his room with his Toy Story characters and asked to do a photo shoot with them.

Hunter had built this wood airplane with his grandmother a while ago and he wanted to paint it.

So I found a little bird house for Ronin to paint and they enjoyed some paint time.

To play along with Unschool Monday, go here.

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Cheekwood Homeschool Day: Trains

2011-09-03T04:30:00.000-05:00

What I learned from homeschool day at Cheekwood:
1. Sometimes kids just want to sit around inside and color trains.
2. Hunter's toleration of heat is zilch, zero, nada. So we are making lots of plans for things to help keep him cool while we are at Disney World really soon.
3. Drayken is really the only child who cares anything about visiting Cheekwood and I will take him back to see the trains next month. I will, darn it.

Train Art

Train story time

Toddler train chase

Toddler train conference (have I mentioned how SOCIAL D has become?)

The train exhibit takes you through the state of Tennesse... don't ask me what the heck this is though, I totally forgot!

Fun photo op!

Drayken was really taken with this lady lion.

At one point he nearly climbed her trying to examine her face.

No matter what kind of fun exhibits they have at Cheekwood, I am most interested in the colors.

One will always find lots of gorgeous photo ops at Cheekwood.

We had a first class ride up to the mansion to look at the art!
Their favorite part was not the art though... it was the fountain.
Hunter loves money... like Alex P. Keaton.

Since the trains are sticking around until December, our plan is to return to Cheekwood in October for the scarecrow exhibit and then we'll be able to also see the trains as well.

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Our gymnast

2011-09-01T16:04:00.004-05:00

Ronin is taking what we hope to be a temporary break from her classes at ETC Gymnastics. We are sad about this but we have our reasons for pulling her out right now. It wasn't an easy decision because frankly, the girl is talented. She could have a future as a competitor easily... so my prayer is that she'll be able to return. On her last day this week, she asked me to a. snap a bunch of pictures and b. watch her closely! I couldn't believe how far she had come since starting classes in January. Assisted back hand spring? No problemo! Gymnasts amaze as I never could do anything fancier than a bridge. So, I'm in awe of my child.

Here she is with her sweet coach Erin.

They always gather the girls before class.
The coaches ask for prayer requests and then they pray together.

We have thoroughly enjoyed our time at this wonderful place. I am looking forward to Ronin's return to the balance beam next year.

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I CU

2011-08-31T16:39:00.004-05:00

“This week we want to…” purchase a full sized mattress, convert the crib into a full sized bed, move Ronin's twin bed into Hunter's room for Drayken, and give Ronin the full sized bed. As exciting as it is to think that I will no longer stub my toes on the crib, I cannot help but think that it's going to be a very sad, bittersweet moment... moving my baby, my LAST baby out of my room. Sure, we'll co-sleep whenever he needs it. But man, this is a big step.

“The kids are…” taking an interest in new and different things and changing so much. Drayken has started pottying occasionally but he's also talking much much more. He asks to go to class at church and he plays with toys and lets me read to him these days. Ronin has changes in a appearance... not more baby face. She looks so tall and grown up. She's also eating. Constantly. I really cannot keep food in the house. And her reading ability has exploded. Suddenly she can read pretty much anything. Hunter has really come out of his shell. He is much friendlier and seems to enjoy spending time with other children more than he used to. He's expressed an interest in so many new things: hockey, skateboarding, science (in general... experiments, science videos we find online, etc), money, telling time, Piirates, Star Wars, and tie dye.

“I am learning….” about my communication issues. About improvisational comedy. About spiritual warfare.

“I am struggling with…” trying to decide exactly what path to take... "career" wise. I feel a deep desire to find a way to contribute to our income but I'm uncertain what to do. After a talk with a dear friend today, I feel encouraged to move forward (after prayer of course) with one particular idea that I have. I am also struggling with my longing to return to the stage. Every so often I start getting that "urge" but today, that urge is overwhelming. Ultimately what I really want to do is to find a female writing partner to help me write a two woman show. But I'm also interested in improv. I guess the point is that I'm ready to move forward with something... I'm in that space again. It's kind exciting!

“This week is the first time….” that we have taken a blanket to the front yard for poetry and Bible time since Hunter's been home from the hospital. I cannot WAIT until fall!

“I am grateful…” for reconciliation with an important friend.

“I’m looking forward to…..” new episodes of my favorite shows. "Parks and Recreation", "The Office", "glee", and "The Big Bang Theory". And our vacation to Tampa and Walt Disney World. Never have we needed a vacation quite like we do right now.

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I've Trained him Well

2011-08-27T02:16:00.001-05:00

My son is helpful. Well, the oldest one is at least. He loves to clean, straighten, take care of his brother, and generally just pitch in where he is needed. He does this completely on his own... without being told or asked. Occasionally I ask him for his help but that is mostly because I know that he's interested in being a helper. If he says no, it's not a big deal.

He's a helper outside of our home too. Recently I took the children to a nature class at the park near our house. At the end of the class, the students go outside for a bit of a nature walk. Well, Hunter wasn't particularly interested in that... he was tired and also he isn't supposed to be in the sun. So I told him to just stay in the room and I'd be back with the other two kids in a few minutes. When I came back, he had helped set up for the next class, which we also attended. At the end of that class, he helped clean up.

A woman who was there with a child looked at me and said, "I want to take your son home with me. You have trained him well."

I was dumbfounded. Literally muted. I had no response. I just looked at her. I could not believe that someone was trying to give me credit for what he was doing.

His willingness to help has NOTHING to do with me. I have no more trained him than I have trained the other two children and I can assure you that neither of them are as thrilled by the idea of being helpers. Helping, cleaning up, and being useful is part of who he is. Sure, I've encouraged this part of his personality by responding favorably and appreciatively when he's been helpful. But which came first, the chicken or the egg here? See? I didn't create that quality in him... I was just thankful for it when it popped up.

I'm certain that this woman truly meant what she said as a compliment. I was just unable to take it as a compliment towards me, personally. It was a compliment that should have been aimed at him. He would have appreciated hearing her say to him, "I'm really impressed with your willingness to help out." I certainly hope that he didn't hear what she said. How invalidating would it be to hear those words? Can you imagine having friends over for dinner and hearing your guest say to your husband, "Your wife sure can cook! You've trained her well" when in fact, you cooked well long before he was part of your life?

A few days ago, Hunter said that if we go back to that class he would like to go early so that he can help set up for it. Perhaps we will... and maybe that lady will be there and maybe she'll say something to him about his good qualities this time around.

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We Got Served

2011-08-26T14:49:00.000-05:00

On Tuesday, Hunter had to go to clinic. He expressed a great deal of stress and concern about the "surprise mission" that he'd been assigned to do that evening. I decided to fill him in a little bit before time so that he might feel less anxious and able to enjoy himself. We googled the address and I taped our conversation after we found out where we were going.

He announced at some point that he was excited and didn't need more information. We went to the bowling alley and after a bit of confusion, we walked into the room to this...

I have to admit that I was slightly nervous that it would be too overwhelming for Hunter. I figured Ronin would do just fine, have a blast, and come home and pass out from too much sugar. But I wasn't sure how Hunter would do. Maybe it was the time he got to spend at home alone in the middle of the day but he was in a good mood all evening. He had fun, he enjoyed visiting, enjoyed bowling and was simply delighted with the whole event. Much to my relief.

We were served by the Cupcake Crew and man, it was awesome!

As soon as we walked in, we had them pose in front of the main table.
Ronin is killing me here. What is she? A cheerleader?

Before they started bowling all three kids were presented with a year of free martial arts from
Cox Family Martial Arts.

Then they got to kick off the bowling party by rolling the first ball.
None of my kids had ever bowled before and they all seemed to love it!

including Drayken :)

We were surrounded by good friends...

and family.

I simply couldn't believe how many people showed up to support us and love on us! Interestingly enough, the party took place on the 23rd, exactly nine months after Ronin's donation of bone marrow that has saved her brother's life. Their story inspired the Cupcake Crew and Lanes Trains and Automobiles so much that they are holding another event... a bone marrow registry and fundraiser for Be a Match! For more information about this event, go here.

We put together a little thank you video for everyone involved! I hope you enjoy it!

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Plank Pullin': Where I admit that my husband is right

2011-08-25T19:12:00.003-05:00

So a few weeks ago the husband and I had it out. Big time. In a major way. We both said everything that we felt like we needed to say and then some. And we promised each other to do better. What could I possibly be doing wrong you ask? Well, aren't you sweet. But in all honesty, a lot of things according to my husband. His main complaint? Too much internet. Imagine that. I know I know... I am changing the world via Facebook and my blog. But after hearing his complaints on this subject for the past four years, I'm finally ready to do something about it.

I unfriended almost everyone on my page and deleted a few of my pages and I made my husband the admin for two of the three pages that I still have. I have also stopped looking at my feed and I'm considering deleting everyone from my friends' list and just keeping up with people via the couple of groups that I'm running or a member of on Facebook. I've all but stopped blogging. I'm STILL not where I'd like to be but I'm working on it. I really am. I wish that I could create a block for Facebook that would keep me from being able to access it until after dinner. Sad, isn't it? Most days I cannot avoid turning on my computer because we use the internet for Spanish lessons or I need to email someone or look up a phone number, etc. It's so hard to not turn on FB. But I've made a lot of head way.

Has it made a difference in my marriage? Absolutely. My husband and I are talking again. He seems less angry with me and the children. He seems less depressed and down about the constant stress in his life. From having a kid with a serious illness to having vehicle troubles, he's had plenty of reasons to feel stressed out. But I see that he has a lot of reasons to feel happy and grateful too. I think he's starting to see that as well. He has started working out again... and eating healthier... and even juicing.

Amazingly, I've figured out that his theory about my computer usage was right. I really am more tuned in to the kids when the computer is turned off. I really do notice what they are doing and I am more successful in keeping them occupied, happy, content, and even safe. The days flow better and I am less distracted. He predicted that I'd find this and he was right.

I hope that I can continue to make adjustments to my days to where I'm eventually not using Facebook at all except at night. I'd like to schedule two blogging "sessions" per week and stick to that as well. If you have suggestions on how to manage online time please let me know!
Or if you just want to vent about your own issues with dependency upon online communication, I'd love to hear that I'm not alone!

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A Field Trip to the Murfreesboro Airport

2011-08-25T00:03:00.000-05:00

This past week we had a chance to visit the Murfreesboro Municipal Airport with some friends from church. We enjoyed watching some planes take off and land.

Then we got to climb aboard a plane...

and take control of the cockpit. How awesome is THAT?

Hunter wanted to know why there were no seats aboard the plane. We learned that the plane was donated by FedEx and therefore it carried packages, not people. I thought that this shot of Hunter looking around the plane was a bit eerie... yet gorgeous.

Another thing we learned was that this airport is open to the public. You can just go there and look around for the most part. So if you are local or are going to be in the area, why not stop by? This was a fun and interesting field trip for all three of my kids! And it was free!
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Superheroes

2011-08-23T00:01:00.000-05:00

The kids were so excited last week to find a package in the mailbox addressed to all three of them.

It seems someone had donated super hero capes to them via "Kiss the Toad Creations". Awesomeness!!

Aren't they gorgeous? And the capes are pretty cool too! Haha! I have no idea who donated these lovely capes to Hunter, Ronin and Drayken but we send a big super thank you out to that person/those people!

It seems that you, too, can donate a cape to a child fighting cancer. Learn more by clicking here.
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Hunter's first "Pippin" rehearsal

2011-08-22T00:03:00.002-05:00

In case you didn't know because you don't follow along with us on Facebook, Hunter was cast in the role of "Theo" in a local production of "Pippin" at Murfreesboro Little Theater. We have attended one read through and one rehearsal.

As you can see, Hunter got a bit bored since his role as "little Pippin" in scene 1 is small and involves no lines. From now on he will be taking his DS with him to rehearsals.

It's a great cast and amazing director with whom he's working.
I'm a little jealous that he is on the stage...and I'm just a stage mom this time around.
Thrilled that one of my kids is following in my footsteps though.

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Little do they know...

2011-08-21T00:01:00.001-05:00

On Thursday, August 18, Hunter, Ronin and I joined a 3rd grade class at a local elementary school. We showed them photos of their leukemia journey, talked to them, and answered their questions. This was all part of their secret mission (remember this letter that they received the other day?) but they had no idea. These third graders spent some time decorating boxes for cupcakes that will be "served" to Hunter, Ronin, and Drayken and a HUGE number of their friends on this coming Tuesday night. It's all part of a big celebration that has been planned in their honor by a new local organization called the Cupcake Crew. After the children are served, we are planning to serve some local heroes ourselves. Of course, they just have no idea what is going on! I cannot wait to share with you photos and a video of them being surprised by friends and family! Sooooooo exciting!

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